Of All the Places to be
by PassiveAggressive101
Summary: She chose to stay behind, knowing fully what Georgia had become. But she had to find them, at any cost. Eventual DarylxOC.  Post season 1 .
1. Not All Those Who Wander are Lost

_Hey guys,  
>It's been a while since I've written a story. A LONG while, and this is in a completely different type of story...An actual story as opposed to my one-shots.<em>

_I may not be able to update frequently as I do have school and other such worries, but I will try my best._  
><em>Regards,<em>  
><em>PassiveAggressive101<em>

_Please note that I own nothing, not the story, characters, or anything else. I don't even own the land I live on._

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><p>"At times, I think it was a mistake to stay here. After all, I literally had the world at my fingertips; a pilot willing to fly me away, friends who wanted me to go, money to blow in any way I saw fit, and more supplies than I could ever hope to carry.<p>

"Yet here I am, wandering among the damned looking for a person I'm not sure is alive with an inherited companion I can't really control. To top it all off, I'm slowly running out of supplies.

"I hate Georgia. I always wanted to escape it. That's why I became a flight attendant; travel the world, see all it has to offer, take in the cultures of the world...Pretty much anything but go home. But of course, I have to know the fate of my brother. Of course I had to abandon my shot at salvation for the simple knowledge of knowing whether or not he and my niece are alive. I wouldn't be able to live in peace anywhere without knowing. Well, considering the deterioration of the world, I doubt I'd be able to live in peace anywhere, but definitely not without knowing whether they were alive or dead.

"I've lost track of the days. I don't think they really matter anymore.

"I wish I could organize my thoughts, I really do, but I haven't eaten in days and the Lucky has run off. If I don't find him...Well, nothing happens really, but I want to find him. He's the only not reanimated thing I've found in the unknown amount of time I've been heading towards Columbus.

"Any company, even if it's only the soft pattering of paw prints on the road, is welcome in a world ruled by the dead. But I'm sure if you're listening, you know what I'm talking about.

"My name is Taylor, by the way. Taylor Roberts. If you're heading towards Columbus and happen upon a dog, please take care of him. On the off chance I can't find him, or he can't find me, he responds to the name Lucky. He followed me to the end of the earth, I'm sure he'll do the same for you if you let him.

"Until next time, if there is a next time...to anyone listening, good day, good luck, goodbye."

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><p>Taylor switched off the walkie talkie. She doubted there was anyone listening (after all, she had found the bloody thing lying around), but it was always nice to talk. Being a flight attendant, you got use to making announcements; we're departing, we're landing, the emergency exits are located to your right... Maybe it was a habit, or maybe she was just desperately hoping that there was someone else like her; alive, coherent, not wanting to feast on the flesh of the living.<p>

She jumped down off the roof of the SUV. She had a dog to find...Not that Lucky couldn't look after himself mind you (he was always bringing her back squirrels and such), it was more for Taylor's comfort. She picked up her oversized backpack which had slowly been getting lighter as time passed by and started walking down the road.

She had learned that stealth was possibly the most important thing for survival. If you can avoid being seen, you can avoid being eaten. Even though the walkers eyes had glossed over, they still could see you from a distance away. If they did see you, you were probably as good as dead unless you had the balls to decapitate it, or cause it some serious brain damage. If you can't, then a good pair of running shoes and a clear path was your best option.

Otherwise, a quick bullet to the head was probably your best bet. She sighed and touched the revolver holstered at her side. Seven chambers, but only four bullets left. Not that she'd used any. Not that the people who had could have bothered to pack more bullets on their way to their death.

'Whatever,' Taylor concluded internally, 'If push comes to shove, at least I can end it quickly,'. Being eaten was possibly the worst way to go.

Suicide was always an options.

Everyone was damned anyhow.

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><p>The road was littered with abandoned cars containing dead bodies, but one was ever sure if the dead were really dead. They seemed to play dead, only moving when they caught scent or sight of the living.<p>

Daryl revved the engine on his recently inherited motorcycle, leading the way through the makeshift graveyard. The sun was beginning to set and the group would need to find someplace to sleep soon, preferably off the beaten path.

That's when he spotted it in the distance. A big dog carrying what looked like a squirrel in it's mouth, walking the same way the group was going. He looked into the RV, and sure enough Dale had spotted it too. Daryl slowed his motorcycle and allowed himself to get level with the drivers side of the RV.

"Ever seen an infected mutt?" He asked the older man, already considering if he could hit it with his crossbow. The dog was roughly 100 feet away...

"No," Dale replied, keeping his eyes on the dog. "But that doesn't mean it's impossible." The dog turned having heard the engines. It seemed to sniff the air before starting to trot towards the pair. The RV slowed to a halt while Daryl jumped off his motorcycle and aimed at it.

"Don't go shooting it before you know if it's infected!" Dale called out to him. Andrea appeared in the passenger seat.

"Easy for you to say," Daryl replied, levelling his crossbow. "You're inside the fucking RV, it ain't gonna go after you!"

"For God's sake Daryl, the thing looks harmless! Let it be." Andrea called, taking a seat while shaking her head.

The dog sat down a few feet in front of Daryl, sniffed the air again and began wagging it's tail. It slowly closed the gap between them before dropping the squirrel to the ground, almost like a peace offering.

"It's got to belong to someone." Dale noted. "It looks too well fed and groomed to have been a stray for long. Looks like it's got a collar, too."

Daryl knelt down on his knee and inspected the collar while the dog attempted to lick his hand. "Mutt's name is Lucky," he called before standing again. The dog's ears perked up at the sound of it's name before abruptly turning and walking in the direction it had come from. It stopped and looked over it's shoulder before continuing.

"What's the hold up?" Rick appeared at the side of the RV, looking towards Daryl for answers.

"Thought the mutt was infected." Daryl explained briefly, pointing to where the dog was disappearing to. "Thing marched right up to me before turning it's ass around."

"The dog looks like it's being looked after, Rick." Dale chimed in. "We might have another survivor on our hands."

Rick ran a hand through his hair. "It's going in the same direction we are. If we happen across it's owner, we'll stop. If it trails off our path, we leave it." He decided. "We should keep going." Daryl shrugged and hopped on his motorcycle, revving the engine before tailing the dog.

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><p>An inhuman growl startled Taylor out of her peaceful walking daydream. She turned to her right, and sure enough a walked had turned it's inhuman eyes towards her.<p>

'How the fuck did I not see that,' she thought to herself, taking out her machete. She let out an unsteady breath. 'Aim for the head, aim for the head, remember aim for the head. Don't let it bite you...' Her internal monologue went off as the thing lurched towards her.

'Male, mid 20's. Bloody staining it's plaid shirt. Sandals, khaki shorts. Probably just heading off for a vacation before he was overrun by walkers, bitten and left for dead. Or maybe he was making a fruitless escape attempt. He probably had a family; girlfriend, dog, hopes, dreams, aspirations. Maybe he had wanted to cure cancer, maybe write a book...'

Taylor shook the thoughts out of her head. She had to stop giving them back stories, humanizing them. It made them so much harder to kill.

'He's wearing a wedding ring'. Taylor took a deep breath in. The thing was only a few feet away now. Her hands were shaking and clammy, she hadn't had to kill one for days.

She lifted the machete over head head and hit the top of it's skull. With a sickening _crack_ the walker fell to it's knees, giving Taylor a chance to dislodge her machete before it finally collapsed. She gagged at the smell before something licked her free hand. With a smell shriek she turned.

"Lucky," she sighed, taking in a shaky breath. The dog look at her with it's big brown eyes, wagging it's tail, not knowing that she had just taken a walkers life. "Where'd you run off to?" As if responding to her question, the dog turned and looked over it's shoulder.

That's when she spotted them. Headlights. With the sun setting and darkness falling rapidly, she was surprised she hadn't noticed them. A motorcycle, an RV and a jeep from the looks of things.

A thousand thoughts immediately ran through her brain. 'They could be friendly,' was the first, closely followed by 'or they could be cannibals running out of food'. She turned to glare at the dog. "If I get eaten by these people because of you," she warned the Shepherd, "I assure you, I will find a way to reanimate and eat you."

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><p><em>And I'm going to leave it there for tonight. Please give me some feedback; am I doing good, bad, horrid? Do I capture the characters in any way? Do I suck?<em>

_I do have a backstory for Taylor which will reveal itself in the next few chapters via flashbacks to the beginning of the outbreak, and what she means by her opening statement. I didn't want to overload you guys!_

_Thanks for reading, please review!_


	2. Strained Introductions

_Hello, treasured readers!  
>Thank-you to all who read the first chapter, due to an overwhelming response I've decided to write another one. Today (possibly yesterday, depending on when I post this) was my birthday, and a friend of mine got me comic book 1 of The Walking Dead. I'm almost finished it already.<br>Just a reminder, I own nothing involved in this story._

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><p>Daryl was leading the way, but stopped a good distance away to inspect the situation. The dog had led them to a woman; half starved, greasy light brown hair. Clearly she was in desperate need of food and a bath. Her clothes were covered in a layer of dirt, their original color unrecognizable. She looked terrified; obviously it had been a while since she'd run into anyone.<p>

Taylor hadn't run into a single person in the whole time she'd been wandering. Her heart kept fluttering, grateful that she wasn't alone in the world, while terrified as to what the world could have turned them into. The man who had dismounted the motorcycle seemed to be inspecting her head to toe. 'Must be looking for bite marks,' she thought to herself.

"Erm..." Taylor tried to think of an appropriate greeting. "Sorry of he caused any trouble," she gestured to the dog sitting beside her. "He's not exactly mine, I can't control him...". Her voice cracked a bit, regardless of the fact that she had been speaking into a walkie-talkie not even half an hour ago.

Daryl nodded and, without saying a word, turned towards the RV. "Found the mutt's owner." He called, giving Taylor a nod over his shoulder.

"He's not a mutt," Taylor corrected without thinking. Daryl turned towards her, an eyebrow raised. "Well, I mean mutt would imply cross-bred...He's a pure bred German Shepherd from what I can tell." Daryl didn't respond immediately, seeming to weigh his options. "Still a filthy mutt." He finally said. Taylor didn't dispute him this time.

The door to the RV opened, Dale and Andrea emerging. "Well I'll be damned..." Dale shook his head. "You look like you've been to hell and back."

"I'm still in hell, actually," Taylor said, cracking a half smile. "We all are,". She chuckled lightly to herself, until she noticed the three seemed to be a little unnerved by her behaviour.

Suddenly two men appeared from behind the RV; a man in a cowboy hat (it was Taylor's turn to be a little unnerved by someones behaviour), a man carrying a rather large shotgun and a younger asian man. "So you've been taking care of the dog?" One of them called, the one wearing the hat.

"Uhm...Sort of. He's just been following me, bringing my squirrels and such...I suppose, if anything, he's been looking after me." Taylor bent down to pat the dog's head.

"Well," The cowboy hat clad man said, closing the distance between them quickly "My name is Rick. This," he pointed to the older gentleman "is Dale. That's Glenn," Rick said, gesturing to the asian boy, "And that's Daryl." He concluded, pointing to the first man Taylor had encountered. Rick held out his hand, which Taylor shook briefly.

"Wow," Taylor said, looking at all of them. "Here I was, thinking I was the last sane person wandering these streets..." She shook her head until she noticed the silence. "Oh," she blurted, understand what they were waiting for. "This is Lucky, and my name is Taylor Roberts."

"Well, Taylor, you're more than welcome to travel with us. You look like you could use some supplies..." Rick smiled, glancing at her backpack.

"It's not so bad," Taylor said, tossing it off her shoulder onto the ground. "I've got vitamins to get me by day-to-day, pop for sugar, chips every couple of days..." As she mentioned each item, she'd pull some out to demonstrate.

"Whoa!" A young boy appeared from behind the RV, startling Taylor. She hadn't thought any children would have survived the outbreak, but parents did have this funny way of putting their children first in any situation. The boy was followed closely by a girl of seemingly the same age. "Coke!" Without thinking, the boy ran right up to it, almost grabbing it before thinking better of himself. Rick smiled.

"Taylor, this is my boy, Carl and his friend Sophia." Rick messed Carl's hair a bit. Sophia looked slightly frightened by Taylor, hugging a doll to her chest.

"Hello, Carl." Taylor's smile widened, glancing between him and the coke can she had in her hands. "When's the last time you had a coke, little one?" She asked, kneeling down to his level.

"Before...everything happened, ma'am." Carl answered carefully, his eyes only briefly straying from the can. Taylor tossed it in the air, considering. "Tell you what, little one," she finally concluded, "you can have this can if you promise to enjoy it." The boy looked up at her with a shocked look.

"Really, ma'am?" He asked, gently reaching out and taking it from her.

"Sure, just as long as your dad says it's okay." Taylor's eyes quickly flickered up to Rick, who smiled.

"Go ahead, Carl." Carl looked at the can as if it were made of gold, before looking Taylor in the eyes. "Thank-you!" He said before popping the cap. Rummaging thorough her bag, Taylor pulled out another can- this time, Sprite.

"Same goes for you, Sophia. As long as-" Taylor cut herself off abruptly. What if the girl had no parents, and Taylor made the poor girl cry?

"Rick?" A female voice this time. "What's going on up there?" A woman with long, dark hair, accompanied by one with a buzz cut came into view. They spotted Taylor and stopped abruptly.

"It's okay," Rick called, waving them over. "She's not infected."

"And how the hell do we know that?" Daryl spoke for the first time, addressing Rick, seemingly outraged. "Fer all we know, she could have bite marks all over her. We just met the bitch, we don't know if she's bit or not."

This seemed to grab everyone's attention, and all eyes were on Taylor. "Erm..." Taylor scratched the back of her neck with her free hand. "I'd...Well...I'll to a strip search, as long as it's a woman doing it...If that would make you all feel better." Taylor handed the Sprite to Sophia without warning, who took it and with a small squeak which Taylor interpreted as 'thank-you', ran towards the buzz-cut woman. Taylor shifted uncomfortably with all eyes on her.

"Beside, where the hell you comin' from? Ain't no other survivors we come across in a long time." Daryl took a few steps towards Taylor, almost sizing her up. Taylor stood her ground, genuinely confused.

"Back off, Daryl..." The man with the shot-gun spoke for the first time, taking a step forward.

"No, it's fine." Taylor cut him off. "I'm heading towards Columbus, I have family there. I want...Well, I want to know if they're alive is all. If not, I don't know. If they are, I suppose I'll stay with them."

"You ain't answering my question, 'case you hadn't noticed. Where'd you come from?" Daryl asked, taking another step toward. "And the fuck did you find equipment like that?" He gestured to the gun and machete attached to her belt. "That ain't somethin' a little girl should be carrying around."

Taylor twitched a little bit, but took a deep breath in. She was about to answer when the long-haired woman intervened. "Stories can be saved for later." She said calmly, stepping between the two. "If you don't mind," She turned towards Taylor, smiling a bit, "I'd like to make sure you're not infected first,".

Taylor nodded a bit before looking around. "I'd rather not do it out in the open, if you don't mind." The sun had set at this point, leaving a nice chill in the air. Taylor drank it in; it had been a long time since she felt comfortable enough to enjoy any type of weather.

"Go into the RV." Dale called. "I'll stay out here with Andrea until you get the okay."

Taylor smiled a genuine smile. "Thank you." She allowed the long-haired woman to walk ahead, leading the way. As soon as the door to the RV closed, the woman began apologizing.

"I'm so sorry for this, especially Daryl. You have to understand, we have children to think about. Even if you are infected, we'll get you comfortable..." The woman ran a hand through her hair while Taylor stood there, dumbfounded. "Oh, shoot. I forgot to introduce myself." The woman laughed a little before calming herself. "My name is Lori, I'm Rick's wife." The woman held out her hand in the same manner as her husband. Taylor giggled a little bit.

"Sorry it's just that you two have the same mannerisms." Taylor took her hand. "I'm Taylor, as I'm sure you know by now. Don't worry," Taylor assured, holding her hands above her head, "I'm not infected. I understand that you can't just take my word for it, don't worry." She peeled off her filth covered shirt, before doing a little circle and repeating the same thing with her pants.

Lori let out a sigh of relief. "Okay." She nodded, half to herself and half to Taylor. "Lucky for you, we're headed towards Columbus too. There's a fort that we're hoping is still standing...We have some supplies that your welcome to, so long as you don't mind my kid getting into your knap-sack." Lori took a breath. "Thank-you for giving him that can, it's been a long time since he's had anything like that."

Taylor chuckled a little. "Don't worry, I'm used to making sure people are comfortable and taken care of." She took a breath, remembering her old life when her main concern was the comfort of her passengers. She shook her head, chasing away the thought. It was better to simply forget your old life sometimes. "When you're a kid, you think junk food is the greatest and wish you could live off of it. When your older, you realize it couldn't possibly work. Then this happens, and you realize it's your only option." She shook her head. "I'm just glad someones enjoying it, I've had enough of that stuff for the past few weeks to last me a lifetime."

"Where did you find all of it anyway? I mean, most stores were looted in the first few days." Lori asked, leaning against the wall behind her while Taylor put on her shirt.

"Well, you see-"

There was a knock at the door of the RV. "Is everything okay in there?" Rick's voice came from outside the RV.

Taylor shrugged. "Stories can be saved for later." She repeated Lori's earlier words.

"Come on, let's go before they go bursting in here thinking you're eating me." Lori tried cracking a joke, heading towards the door. Taylor followed closely after.

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><p><em>Sorry to keep it brief guys, I've got an essay to work on and a couple other things to go. I'll update as frequently as I can, I promise!<em>

_Reviews are always welcome._

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	3. Shadows of the Past

_Hey guys, I got a good start on that essay and just had an energy drink, so I'm gonna try and write another chapter which, as I promised to a few of my reviewers, will give some backstory._

_For those of you who caught on to T-Dog's absence, it shall all be explained._

Just a gentle reminder, I own nothing in this story.

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><p>Lori and Taylor stepped out of the RV. "She's fine." Lori said shortly, giving a pointed glance at Daryl who seemed unnerved by her attitude.<p>

"Well now that that's out of the way," Dale said, breaking the brief tense silence, "We need to find a place to set up camp for the night, preferably a bit out of the way. The highway can't be safe in this light..." His eyes trailed towards the sky, where the glorious sunset had faded into pitch black. Since the power went out across the country, the night had gotten darker due to the cities no longer lighting the night.

"He's right. Taylor, ride in the RV for now. Do you have a sleeping bag or something?" He asked, eyeing her backpack.

"Erm...No. I've just kind of been car-hopping, mostly sleeping on the tallest car I can find. Not saying I slept well, but I couldn't get my hands on one before landing." Taylor shrugged it off. "I can find something, don't worry."

"I have an extra sleeping bag, my husband's..." The bald woman spoke for the first time, offering a small smile. Taylor smiled.

"I'd be very appreciative if you would lend it to me, even just for the night." Taylor responded, returning the smile with a bit more enthusiasm than she had intended. The woman just nodded before ushering her daughter, still clutching the can to her chest, back to the Jeep. Rick nodded to Dale before taking his son by she shoulder and following the pair, his wife trailing slightly behind.

"Do you mind if I hop in the RV with you guys?" Shane asked suddenly. "It's a little cramped in the Jeep, with the kids and all." Glenn nodded in agreement Andrea and Dale exchanged glances. "Sure," Dale finally concluded, "Just don't go trying to shoot everything that moves, unlike this one over here..." He made a vague gesture in Daryl's direction, who was already mounting his motorcycle.

"Just cause you ain't ever seen a walker dog, don't mean they don't exist. Rather kill every mutt we come across than be killed by one just cause you ain't ever seen one." Daryl replied, starting his engine.

"Pure bred." Taylor said simply before opening the door to the RV and climbing in herself, coaxing Lucky in after her. "Mind if I use the washroom?" She asked Dale while he was adjusting the drivers seat, Andrea taking shotgun.

"Go right ahead." Dale said before attempting to start the engine which sputtered in response. "Damn thing!" He declared, hopping out of his seat and back out the door, popping the hood once he was outside.

"Let me help!" Glenn called, following right after. Taylor thought it best not to interfere, considering her knowledge about cars was basically non-existent, instead heading towards the washroom, passing by a bedroom without a glance. Finishing her business quickly, washed her hands with sanitizer ('They must have a good scavenger in their group,' she thought to herself). When she opened the door, she was faced with the barrel of a gun, causing her to jump.

"The fuck are you?" The man asked. He looked like he had just woken up, his eyes still foggy from sleep. His dark skin was stained with sweat.

'Must've been a nightmare,' Taylor thought to herself. 'Probably why he's so jumpy...'

"Taylor," she managed to squeak out, her hands slowly raising in the air. "I'm...uhm...a stray, I suppose."

Shane, having heard the conversation, popped his head out from the front of the RV. "Lori checked her, T-Dog. She's fine, a little worn, but not bitten or infected. She'll be traveling with us for the time being." Lucky looked up from his place on the floor, unsure of how to respond.

The man lowered his weapon, letting out a breath. "Sorry," he apologized, holstering his weapon. "In this day and age, can't be too careful can you?" He offered his hand. "I didn't notice Shane was here, or else I wouldn't have..." He shook his head.

Taylor shook her head, still a little startled. "Yeah, I understand." She said, shaking his hand.

"I hate to be so prying, and I never thought I'd say this..." Shane said from the front, "Bur Daryl does have a point. We haven't come across any survivors in a while. Where are you coming from?"

Taylor sighed. "Mind if I sit down?" She asked, gesturing to the small bed. T-Dog nodded. "Well," Taylor began, placing her hands on her knees, "First, you have to know I'm a flight attendant. I was in Toronto when this all broke out, suppose to be coming back here and taking a bunch of people with us. When...the virus, or God's wrath, whatever you want to call it started spreading, my pilot got a bunch of us stewardesses together..."

"_This isn't good." They sat in the break room at Pearson, the door locked. "These reports are insane, but if they're accurate..."_

"_How're we suppose to board passengers like this? We have to check them for bites or scratches, we can't risk having on infected in a group of people..." Penny, one of her co-workers blurted. She had obviously been crying, here eyes puffy and red. "But...Even then, if we miss one little thing we're all doomed."_

_Chris, the pilot, wrung his hands together. "We need fuel." He said simply. "We need to get out of here. Out of Canada, the US. We can go somewhere, like Hawaii. Maybe Aruba. Maybe it hasn't spread there..." The reports had been inconclusive, no one knew which places (if any) around the world were safe._

"_Where are we going to get that?" Amanda speaking this time. "Think about it; all these rich people with private jets. They'll take the fuel, buy it if currency still matters, fly to wherever they need to go."_

_Chris stood up and began pacing the room. "Yes, but we have something that these small little private jets don't..." He said, a spark of hope suddenly in his eyes._

"_What?" Taylor asked eagerly. She'd seen a woman attack her husband earlier, in the middle of the airport...Security had done their best to cover it up, but these was no mistaking the woman had definitely bit him. No one knew why, the idea not yet coming to light, only widespread panic and vain attempts at treating them as isolated incidents. No one wanted to connect the dots, not then._

_The world had gone to shit less than 8 hours later._

"_We have space for people to come with us, not like these small 4 person planes these rich bastards buy." Chris finally concluded. "We make a deal; fuel for space on our plane."_

"So Chris made a few discreet calls to some airports. Atlanta was the only one that accepted our offer. We offered the fuelling guys space on our plane for them and their families in exchange for a tank full of fuel. They were smart enough to take the offer."

_Chris clicked his cellphone shut. "Now, we load up the plane with anyone who wants to go to Atlanta. If we're going to waste the fuel, we might as well bring some people with us and drop 'em off."_

_Taylor shook her head. After incidents started coming to light through the media in the hundreds, most had thought better than going to the airport; you'd think the opposite, but they had enough sense to know crowds were a bad idea. There were maybe 50 people in the airport, mostly employees unsure of what to do._

"_They'll have to be okay with strip searches. That has to be a condition, Chris. We can't risk someone going mad on the plane." Chris nodded. _

"_Small price to play."_

"The worst was when we found someone with a bite and had to turn them away. They begged. I would too..."

"_I'm sorry," Taylor told the woman, a bite mark on her upper arm. "I can't let you on the plane, you'd be a risk for the other passengers." Taylor's heart broke with every word._

"_Please," the woman asked, her blue eyes brimming with tears. "I can't stay here, you can't make me stay here! I'm fine, I swear! It's not deep! I feel fine!" Tears started rolling, smudging her carefully applied make-up, into her chestnut hair immaculately curled. The image of perfection contaminated by death._

"_Go be with your family," Taylor urged, turning away and going onto inspect the next person, "I truly am sorry, ma'am."_

"_YOU LYING BITCH!" The woman roared, suddenly furious. "You're not sorry; you get a free ride out of here, all because of your job! You probably want the space for yourself!"_

"_I'm so sorry." Taylor said, a tear falling from her eye. "But please, go be with your family. I can't do anything about it. Captains orders."_

The door to the RV suddenly opened, startling Taylor back into the present. "It should be able to run for a little while," Dale stated, "but we're going to need a new hose soon. Can't keep going like this."

Everyone nodded as Dale started the engine, but Shane wanted to know more.

"So why' you stay behind then, if you had fuel and a spot on the plane?" Dale and Glenn, for not having heard the first half of the story, seemed eager to listen despite it.

"My twin brother lives in Columbus, and his wife was 8 and a half months pregnant when this thing started..."

"_Captain," Taylor opened the door to the cock-pit, sticking her head in. "I'd like to have a word, if it's not too much trouble."_

"_No, no..." Chris sighed, incredibly composed despite the chaos that the world had gone to. "Sit, please." Chris' co-pilot had been bitten in Toronto, and resolved to stay instead of risking the rest of the crew._

"_I want you to leave me in Atlanta." Taylor stated simply. Chris gave her a dumbfounded look._

"_Taylor," He sighed again, clearly agitated. "This thing isn't going to blow over. As much as the people want to believe the army is going to take care of them...Taylor, 10 hours ago the world was fine. Eight hours later we're strip searching our passengers for bite marks. It's going to get worse and worse faster and faster. At least if we get away, we have a shot."_

"_Chris, my brother, his wife..."_

_Chris rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I have my wife, Taylor. You think I don't want to go back to her? But the world isn't that place anymore. You have to let your loved ones go..." Chris suddenly turned, furious. "The hell are you going to go anyway? Anything that's going to happen had probably already happened. Even if they ARE working on a cure, how long before it's ready, Taylor? You can't save them..."_

"_This isn't about saving them!" Taylor shouted, suddenly furious. "I can't live not knowing, damn it! At least if I know, I can live knowing I tried! I can't sit on a beach knowing my brother and his wife and his unborn baby may still be alive in this hell hole!"_

"_So you join them in the hell hole, Taylor?" Chris shouted right back._

"_That's family. I don't expect you to understand, but you can't stop me either way Chris." Taylor turned, her mind made up._

"_Taylor," Chris' voice was quiet now, controlled. "If...If you're really going to do this..." He sighed, pressing a button on the dash before standing. From under his chair he pulled a long, black box. "Seeing as how we have half our security people on this plane..." He spoke while opening the box, "It wasn't hard to get this on board." From the box he pulled a long, sharp machete. "Take it." He held it out to her._

"_Chris..."_

"_You're naive if you think this is all I brought with me." Chris encouraged. "I've got more things, don't worry. But I think this will help the most. Just remember, aim for the head. That's what all the reports say."_

"Wow." Glenn said. "I didn't realize how insane air transport had become in those few hours."

"Yeah," Taylor shook her head. "But it got me back here, and that's all I needed."

"Looks like Daryl thinks this is a good place." Dale said, interrupting. "He's pulled over. Come on, let's get set up." He looked towards the back. "Let Andrea sleep, she's been through..." Dale simply shook his head while exiting the RV.

Taylor turned, seeing the blond girl curled up on the bed. "Come on," Glenn encouraged. "Setting up tents always takes the longest."

"I'll help." Taylor offered. "Can't promise I'll be any good, but I'll try."

"That's all we need." T-Dog offered, smiling a bit.

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><p><em>Alright guys, I'm pooped. Off to bed with me!<em>

_Reviews are always welcome! I promise I'll write more about Daryl and Taylor next chapter, I just wanted to establish some character first, not just jump into it!_

_Thanks guys!_


	4. Attempts at a tent

_Hey guys, I just finished that essay I've been working on and started on my next one, so instead of going to bed at a decent hour I've decided to update my story! Self sleep deprivation and this story seem to go hand in hand..._

_Thank-you to all the people who have added this story to their alert list, and a particularly big thank-you to those of you who took the time to review._

_As promised, I will get some more Daryl and Taylor in this chapter. A lot, in fact, because Taylor is a horrible survivalist. So far, I estimate this story being anywhere between 10-15 chapters, but I will see what happens._

_Updates may be slow in the weeks to come because I do have some major projects heading my way, I hope you will all understand._

_Just a gentle reminder, I own nothing in this story._

* * *

><p>"Okay..." Taylor took a step back to admire her handy work. "That should hold, I hope..." The group had essentially handed her some rods and what she assumed was suppose to be the outside of a tent and left her to build it. Lori and Carol were keeping and eye on Sophia and Carl who had found some kind of bug to play with, Shane, Rick and Dale were working on a small fire, Glenn and T-Dog had set up a tent each and were now lounging around, and Daryl...<p>

Taylor looked around. Where had Daryl run off to?

"Ain't you ever put up a tent before?" Taylor jumped a little bit as his voice appeared behind her. She stood from the ground and turned to face him when she noticed he was still holding his cross-bow. 'Doesn't he ever put that thing down?' She thought to herself before noticing the muscles in his arms. 'I guess he doesn't...'

"To be perfectly honest," Taylor had a lopsided grin on her face, "I've never really had to...".

"Ain't you ever been campin'?" He asked, glancing between her pathetic excuse for a tent and herself.

"No." Taylor sighed. She could tell this conversation wasn't going to end well just by the tone of his voice.

"You mean ta tell me you ain't ever spent a night outside your whole life?" Daryl snapped, seeming to be almost offended by the fact. It was as if her lack of skills in the wilderness were a personal attack on him.

Taylor took a deep, calming breath. "Like I said, before this I never had to. Before this whole walker epidemic, there was no need. After the zombie epidemic, I couldn't get my hands on a tent." Taylor looked him dead in the eye. "I've slept outside. I've never slept in a tent. I've never set up a tent." At these words, the tent she had managed to construct collapsed, making Taylor growl in frustration. "Had I known the world was going to shit, Daryl," she said angrily while pulling the rods out of the tent material, "I would have learned. Believe me." She tossed the rods angrily to the ground and attempted to form them into a tent shape, planning on just draping the material over the top.

"Fuckin' city folk ain't good for nothin'. Here," Daryl snatched the rods right out of her hands and began feeding them through the holes in the tent material. "Just fuckin' watch so I won't haveta help ya again."

"I thought those were ventilation holes..." Taylor explained, kneeling down to help him. Daryl stopped what he was doing and seemed to be trying to determine if she was serious. Suddenly he was on his feet, aiming the crossbow in her vague general direction.

"Whoa," Taylor was on her feet, getting out of his lie of fire. "I didn't know survival skills and tent assembly were enough to kill me over!" She exclaimed angrily, glaring at him.

"I heard sumtin." Daryl replied, his eyes not leaving the area he had been aiming at. "I don' give a fuck if you can't set up a tent as long as I don't haveta help you every damn night..." He replied with a slight smirk. Suddenly from the darkness Lucky emerged, tail wagging, holding another dead squirrel in his mouth.

"You really, really need to stop bringing me these..." Taylor said when the dog dropped it at her feet, it's neck mangled and fur covered in blood and saliva. "It's disturbing." Lucky wagged his tail and licked at her hand.

Daryl watched her walk away after giving the dog a pat on the head and leaving the squirrel to pick up some rods. "Ain' you gonna do anything with tha' squirrel?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

Taylor sighed again. "I think setting up this tent is more important than burying a dead squirrel, don't you? Besides, he'll use it as a chew toy. Just wait." Taylor began attempting to imitate the way Daryl had been feeding the rod through, but it kept falling out, making Taylor even more frustrated.

"I don' mean burying it, you city mouse. I mean cookin' it up, eatin' it." Taylor looked at her dog.

"Have you been trying to feed me this whole time?" She asked Lucky, who stuck his tongue out and began panting as a response. "Aren't I lucky I found you..." Taylor gave the dog another pat on the head and gave up on putting the tent together for the time being, instead turning to where the squirrel carcass lay. She hadn't eaten anything besides chips an cracker once every few days for...well, however she'd been wandering the highways. Meat did sound good, except...

She looked up at Daryl.

"There is only one problem with this idea."

"W'as that?"

"I don't know how to skin a squirrel, or anything else really."

Daryl shook his head before kneeling and grabbing the dead squirrel by it's tail. "Damn city folk..." He muttered before producing a knife from his belt.

"Please don't do that here." Taylor blurted without thinking. Daryl paused.

"Why the fuck not?"

"I might vomit, and considering I haven't eaten or drank much in the past few days it'll be mostly stomach acid and that's never fun to puke up, your throat burns and your eyes water and...please don't to it here." Taylor ranted, her face becoming more pale with each word.

Daryl looked at her. "Look," He said, running the knife down the length of the squirrel causing Taylor to gag. "Judgin' by the look of ya, you been wanderin' round here fer a while. Don' know if ya noticed, but we got dead people eatin' livin' people. This," He held up the squirrel, now missing a chunk of fur and skin, "Is not the worst thing ya gonna see. Not the worst thing you shoulda seen. Now, unless you're lyin..."

"No, no it's not the worst I've seen." Taylor took a moment to shake off the shock of seeing the squirrel missing a piece of skin before continuing. "I just really like squirrels..." Lucky laid down at her feet, looking up at Daryl with his ears raised.

"You got a huntin' dog and you ain't never been huntin." Daryl stopped skinning the squirrel long enough to look at her. "How'd that happen?" He asked, considering the dog at Taylor's feet.

"Like I said, I found him. He's not really mine." Taylor responded, turning her attention back to the rods and tent material.

"If tha' dog is bringin' you squirrel, he's your dog." Daryl shook his head, "An' if yer just gonna screw up that tent even more, just wait til I finish this an' I'll show ya how to do it."

Taylor stopped what she was doing and froze. 'Is he actually trying to help me?' She thought to herself. "Erm..." She placed the poles back on the ground. "Thank-you, I think it'd be much faster that way."

Daryl shrugged. "I was wonderin' if you'd let me take this mutt with me tomorrow. Huntin', I mean. I ain't had a huntin' dog with me in a long while, an' he seems pretty good at it. How many of these guys he bring ya so far?" He asked, nodding at what was previously a squirrel and now a bloody mass of meat in his hands.

"Roughly twelve of them." Taylor responded. Lucky had now closed his eyes, his breath regular and timed.

"An' how long you had 'em?"

"I don't know. I stopped counting days...Hasn't everyone?" She asked, trying to redirect the conversation.

"Not Dale." Daryl scoffed. "Winds his watch every damn day." Daryl stood up "I'm gonna go give this," He held up the skinned squirrel in his hands, "To him. He's workin' on the fire, should know how to cook it." He looked towards Lucky, a small smile on his face.

"I'll stay here, everyone else seems busy." She shrugged. Daryl walked off, while Taylor lost herself in how she met Lucky.

_It had been days since she had managed to get out of the airport undetected by the walkers. It was simply a stroke of luck that she had made it this far. The sun was just beginning to rise (or set, Taylor wasn't completely sure anymore, she was just so tired) and she was looking for a place to sleep. Suddenly she heard the soft pattering of feet behind her..._

"Hey," A large, calloused hand was being waved in front of Taylor's face. "I ain't gonna set this thing up for ya' if you jus' gonna sit there an' daydream." Daryl told her.

"Yeah," Taylor responded. "I mean no! I mean...Shit." Taylor shook her head, rubbing a hand through her greasy hair.

Daryl simply raised an eyebrow before grabbing a few rods. "Tha fuck got you so zoned out?"

"I'm sorry! I'm grateful for the help, really," She smiled before continuing, "You just got me thinking about how I met Lucky is all."

"Eh?" Daryl responded, continuing to feed the longest rod through the bottom of the material.

"Yeah. I was wandering down the highway..."

_Taylor turned, machete at the ready in a heartbeat. Lack of sleep make her incredibly jumpy, and she was extremely sleep deprived at the moment. She saw that it was only a dog and lowered her weapon._

"_Well," Her voice came out scratchy from not being used "Where'd you come from?" Taylor asked the dog, and as though it was responding it started walking ahead of her. Taylor looked around to make sure there were not walkers. 'Well,' she thought to herself, 'As long as he stays on the highway I have no real reason not to follow him...' With that she began trailing behind the dog, who after a short distance stopped abruptly in front of a blue car with tinted windows. The dog laid down and began whining._

_Taylor considered her options. 'I could leave him here...He might follow me though. But he seems to want to stay here.' Taylor took a few steps away, and sure enough the dog stood up to follow._

_'Maybe there's something in there he wants...' She thought again, and considered opening the car door. She reached out with her right hand but thought better of it,instead gripping her machete with her right and using her left to grip the door handle. 'Better safe than sorry,' she thought to herself. Taylor glanced at the dog to see if it was going to attack her for intruding, but it seemed to be almost happy with her decision. With a deep breath she yanked the car door open._

_After glancing in for a few seconds, she knelt down and vomited onto the highway._

_Inside the car was what use to be a family. Son with brown hair and pudgy cheeks, wife with her light hair in a ponytail, husband in a blood stained dress shirt. A picturesque family, slaughtered to save themselves from becoming food. They must' have killed the son first, because there was long-flaked mascara on the woman's cheeks. She had been crying, mourning her dead son, furious at herself and her husband for making the decision to take the highway. The walkers must have been coming..._

"The man, the husband..." Taylor began ruffling through her bag looking for something, "Had a note in his hand..."

_Taylor carefully pried the mans long-dead fingers off the piece of paper..._

"Here it is." Taylor said, producing the paper from her bag, her face devoid of emotion. "Read it." She instructed Daryl, holding it out to him. "Unless rednecks can't read..." She added, revenge for him calling her "city folk". Daryl, almost finished setting up the tent, scoffed and took it from her.

"_I suppose he lead you here, if you're reading this." Taylor read to the dog, a puddle of puke beside her. The dog, for his part, seemed rather attentive. "The dog was my sons. I don't have the heart to kill him after shooting my baby boy. If you're reading this, please take care of him. He followed my son to the end of the earth, I'm sure he'll to the same for you..." The dog whined a little bit. Hastily, almost as though the man had added it after writing the first part, before the walkers came to his car were the words "His name is Lucky,"._

"So I coaxed him into following me," Taylor concluded, looking at the now finished tent, "And since then he's been bringing me squirrels, rabbits...pretty much anything cute and dead."

Daryl handed the note back to her. "Why the fuck would ya keep that note?" He asked. "That's sick..."

"It reminds me that people still have some humanity. Some." Taylor emphasized before sniffing the air. "Something smells good..."

"Squirrel." Daryl said simply, standing up and wiping his hands on his pants. "Ya might wanna go get tha' sleeping bag from Carol, unless you plan on sleepin' without it..."

"You're probably right. Thanks, Daryl. I think I can do this myself tomorrow night. Feel free to borrow Lucky tomorrow, but I can't promise he'll follow you." Daryl shrugged and walked off without another word.

Taylor, unaware of how strange it was for Daryl to have a conversation with someone that lasted longer than 3 minutes, shrugged off the whole exchange. "Hey, Lucky..." She asked, still getting use to the sound of her own voice, "Want some squirrel?" The dog hopped up and began nudging her leg with his head. "I'll take that as a yes." She laughed a bit before heading towards the camp fire.

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><p>Daryl stalked off towards his motorcycle to grab a rag to clean off his knife. 'Dumb ass city mouse don' even know how to skin a squirrel, never slept in a tent...' He thought to himself, 'Yet she survived the fucking apocalypse,'. That was luck.<p>

'Dumb ass city mouse found a hunting dog to look after her.' That was luck.

'Dumb ass city mouse is stickin' round for a while...' That made him smile for reasons he didn't understand.

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><p><em>A bit of a corny ending, I know, but I thought it kind of worked. <em>

_Hate it? Love it? Let me know what you think!_

_Next chapter will be the first episode of season 2. _

_See that review button?...Hit it, write one, send it, receive gratitude. I'm off to do a reading for a class, so goodnight to you all!  
><em>

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	5. Dogs, Baths, and Protectors

_Hey guys! It's been a while, sorry about that. Been busy with school and all that.  
>Thank-you for all the reviewsfavorite! It means a lot to me! _

_Just to make a few things clear, Taylor's flashbacks ARE NOT IN ORDER. They're relevant to what she's thinking about; I haven't gotten into how she got out of the airport, and probably won't for a while._

_Anyways, onwards!_

_Just a reminder, I own nothing._

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><p>Taylor awoke with a start, taking a moment to register the pale yellow fabric above her before the previous days events completely registered.<p>

'I actually ate squirrel,' She thought to herself, shaking her head while sitting up. She could hear a bird in the distance, meaning morning had either already come or was approaching.

Stretching a bit before exiting the tent, Taylor found Lucky laying directly outside. "Hey buddy," she whispered, noting that everyone else seemed to be asleep. "Wanna go for a bath?" She asked, to which the dog cocked it's head to the side. "Come on," she encouraged, standing up after zipping the tent shut "You need one as bad as I do." She noted the matted mud and grass in his fur. Taylor herself hadn't had one since before the pandemic. She was near certain her hair was at the point of looking constantly wet. The dog hesitantly starting following.

"Hey," Dale called from the top of the RV, startling Taylor.

"Good morning," she called back, noting the rifle in his hand. "Keeping watch?" She concluded, to which he nodded.

"Someone has to. Where you headed to?" He asked, noting the machete she had in her hands.

"I feel like I need a wash." She said, running a hand through her hair to which he smiled. "Any bodies of water around here?" Dale pointed off in the opposite direction which she had been heading. 'Typical' she thought to herself.

"You might want to bring someone with you. I mean, I can keep a watch, but just in case. You can never be too careful, you know." He said knowingly, before looking at Lucky. "Unless he can protect you."

"I wouldn't run it past him. He's never been one for attacking walkers, but he usually lets me know when one gets too close, save a few times." She shrugged. "I don't want to wake anyone, and I don't want to make you guys wait while I bathe..." Taylor trailed off.

Dale sighed. "Alright," he said before thinking of something. "Bring your gun, just in case. You have used it before, haven't you?"

Taylor's smile fell. "Erm..." She scratched the back of her neck. "Nope." She finally concluded, much to the confusion of Dale.

"Really?" He raised an eyebrow. "It isn't yours, is it?" Dale said, knowingly.

"Nope." Taylor laughed a bit. "Got it the same place I got him." She said, gesturing to Lucky. "Guy shot himself, his son, and his wife...Obviously not in that order, but he couldn't bring himself to shoot his sons dog. Lucky for me." He laughed at the pun.

"I'll give you some lessons when we get the chance. Until then, I'll keep an eye on you from here. Not too close though..." He trailed off, laughing a bit. "My wife would spin in her grave..."

"Thank-you, Dale." She said, walking back to her tent to retrieve her fun before heading towards where he had gestured, Lucky following after.

Dale shook his head, a small smile on her lips.

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><p>Daryl woke to the sound of footsteps passing by the RV before continuing on into the forest. 'Mus' be a fuckin' walker...' He thought to himself, up in one swift movement before snatching up his crossbow. 'Fuckin' guy on the roof probably fell asleep...' He quietly stepped outside, looking up to see if the old man was awake.<p>

"Morning, Daryl." Dale said without taking his eye away from his scope.

"So ya' are awake?" Daryl asked, shaking his head. "Th' fuck you gonna let a walker pass straight by without sayin' nothin' for?"

"Walker?" Dale asked, finally turning his head enough to face him. "No walkers came by. You may have heard Taylor heading to go bathe. Poor girl could use some cleaning up, didn't know anyone could get that dirty."

"Ya gonna let that girl go all on her own?" Daryl asked, his tone rising a bit. "City mouse can't even look afa' herself, gotta get her dirty mutt to do it!"

"She brought her dog." Dale sighed. "Seemed to think he'd keep her safe. Besides," He put his eye to the scope again, "I'm keeping my eye on her as best as I can."

"Useless old perverted man..." Daryl muttered under his breath, shouldering his crossbow. "If ya' keepin' an eye on her, you ain't watching for walkers." He called loud enough for him to hear. "I'll make sure she ain't gonna become breakfas', you keep your fuckin' eye open for walkers. Got it?" Daryl stalked away, shaking his head.

"Don't keep too close an eye." Dale called. "She might get the wrong impression."

Daryl shook his head. Yeah, he hadn't gotten laid in a while, since before the outbreak, but he certainly wasn't desperate enough to fuck some useless city mouse who couldn't even look after herself. 'I ain't gonna be lookin' after some little useless girl just for some ass,' he thought to himself.

'She does have a nice ass,' A little voice in the back of his head replied, to which he rolled his eyes.

Taylor was easy enough to track, as she made absolutely no attempt to hide the broken sticks which she had stepped on, nor cover the footprints she left behind her.

When he spotted her, she was just stripping out of her shirt on the embankment of the river. She stretched a little before bending over to pick up a stick and tempt the dog with it, who eagerly snapped at it, attempting to pull it out of her hands. She pulled back her arm and threw it into the river, which the dog eagerly followed after.

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><p>'There' Taylor thought happily to herself, smiling, 'Now I don't have to worry about giving him a bath.' The sun on her skin felt amazing; it had been a while since she'd had the luxury of being able to relax without constantly looking over her shoulder for the dead looking to eat her flesh. She thought back to all the places she had been; Aruba, Jamaica, countless others where the sun had been great, the company comfortable, the drinks flowing, plenty of time...<p>

She sighed to herself. She could be there now; with her crew, her pilot, her other stewardesses, instead of this living nightmare. Not that those places hadn't become living nightmares, no one knew...

'But I couldn't leave without knowing.' She sighed, stripping out of her well-worn shorts. 'And I'm close now; close enough I can almost hear Ryan's voice...'

She had prayed beyond praying that her brother and his wife had been spared from the pandemic. She knew her brother; he'd do anything, literally anything, so save his wife and unborn child. Ryan had always been overly protective of anything he loved; he hadn't wanted her to become a flight attendant, fearful that the pilot wouldn't know what he was doing and get her killed...

She stripped out of her undergarments and waded into the water. 'When I find him,' She smiled to herself 'I've gotta tell him how Chris' saved my life fifty times over by giving me that machete...' Taylor turned towards the shore to ensure it was still there when she spotted movement in the trees.

"Oh fuck, fuck fuck fuck..." She muttered to herself before covering her breasts. 'NOT IMPORTANT' A voice in her head screamed. 'You're THIS close to being eaten and you're worried about some stupid fucking walker seeing your BREASTS?' The voice screamed. Taylor attempted to run for shore before slipping on a rock underwater and falling in to water, making a loud splash on her way down.

'Well,' The voice seemed calm now, almost accepting of her fate, 'If it didn't see you before, it saw you now.' The bottom half of her body was covered. 'Wheres my stupid fucking dog when you need him...' Out of the corner of her eye, she was Lucky paddling to shore, stick still held triumphantly in his mouth. 'Typical...'

"Wait!" A voice called, a voice she remembered...

"D...Daryl?" She called hesitantly, her arms moving once again around her breasts.

Daryl emerged onto the shore from the trees, a little red in the face. "I—I was jus'..." Daryl trailed off before he coughed, seemingly to collect his thoughts. "Ol' man said you were headin' this way. Didn't want ya becomin' a human pepperoni stick or nuttin' so..." He trailed off again.

"So?" Taylor pressed, blushing at the situation. "So you followed me, watched me strip, let me think you were going to EAT me," she emphasized the word, "Before thinking to tell me you were here?" She was beyond furious.

Daryl glared at her. "Don' get the wrong idea, city mouse." He seemed to spit the phrase, almost using it as an insult. "Figured you'd a wanted someone besides your fuckin' useless dog or tha' perverted old man keepin' an eye on ya is all, no need to be ungrateful or nuttin'."

"Ungrateful?" She asked. "Need I remind you that Dale- yes, he has a name besides old man- told me he was going to keep an eye on me? He's not a pervert...Unlike YOU, who STALKED me here and SPIED on me!"

"Tracked ya, didn't stalk ya. Don' need ta make it sound all creepy like that!" He shouted, and Taylor lost her nerve.

"I'm not going to say thank-you, if that's what you're waiting for. But if you insist on keeping on eye on me, how about you face the trees and not look at my breasts?" She suggested before turning back towards the water.

"Wasn't lookin' at your little mosquito bites, city mouse..."

"I have a B cup, for fuck sakes!" Taylor turned back, hands once again covering her breasts, face twisted into an angry expression. "They're hardly mosquito bites you fucking hick!"

Daryl couldn't help it. He laughed at the complete stupidity of the situation. "It's the fuckin' end of th' fucking world and you're correctin' me on the size of your tits. Typical chick bullshit." He kicked a rock at his feet. "I'll face the fuckin' trees, just hurry up for fuck sakes."

Taylor took a deep breath in, calming herself. "Okay." She said, loud enough for him to hear. True to his word, he turned his back to her.

Taylor scrubbed at her face and hair, wishing for shampoo and face wash. She longed for a hot shower, a sauna, a heated pool..

She shook her head. In all likelihood, she'd never experience those luxuries ever again. She sighed.

Behind the faint splashes of water, she could hear Daryl talking to Lucky but couldn't make out any words. Heeding his request, Taylor gave one last scrub at her hair before heading back to shore to put her clothes on. Lucky turned to watch her, but true to his word, Daryl didn't look back.

"Ya dressed yet?" He called.

"Yeah." She said in a dull tone, still quite mad at him.

"Am I allowed to turn aroun?" She could hear the smile on his lips, a laugh about to creep out. Taylor picked up her machete and gun.

"No." She said simply, before walking up behind him and flicking him on the back of the head.

"EY!" Daryl declared, grabbing her hand and squeezing a bit. His eyes bore into hers, clearly not use to being flicked on the back of his head. Lucky was immediately on all fours, a dangerous growl rising from his throat. He snarled at Daryl, teeth bared.

"THAT," Taylor declared, "Is for being a pervert and then insulting my breasts." She snatched her hand back before patting Lucky's head, calming him. "Told you he was a good enough guard dog." She added, smiling at the dog who had decided to look after her.

"Didn' notice me..." Daryl declared, keeping pace with her as they headed towards camp.

"That," Taylor replied coolly, a small smirk on her lips, "Is because you're not worth noticing."

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><p><em>To any of you who caught onto the irony of Daryl's statement, you're awesome. <em>

_Anyone who noticed the dual meaning in that last line, you're double awesome._

_If you submit a review, you're triple awesome._

_I know I promised this would be the first episode of season two, but I figured you guys would want some more Taylor/Daryl, so I moved this scene forward and delayed the walkers for a bit. I hope you understand and aren't too disappointed!_

_Thanks for reading and reviewing!_

_-PassiveAggressive101 _


	6. Car Problems

_Hey guys! Sorry about the wait. I've been busy, you've heard it all before. To the main point; UPDATE!_

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>"Do me a favour next time," Rick tried to keep his voice controlled, angered that Taylor had wandered off on her own to bathe. "Bring someone with you. Please. It'll stop everyone from worrying about you."<p>

Taylor nodded. "I brought Lucky..." She squeaked out, to which Daryl, who had been tending to his motorcycle nearby, scoffed.

"Stupid mutt didn' even see me comin'. Couldn' a done hell for ya. Probably couldn' even hear a walker a foot away from his stupid ass." He said, talking to Rick before turning to Lucky and shaking his head.

"Please." Rick reaffirmed before walking away. Taylor turned to Daryl. "Really? Was that necessary?"

"All tha' dogs good fer is huntin'. Ain't gonna do ya no good as a fuckin' guard dog." He stated in a matter-of-fact fashion.

"Whatever, Daryl. You might want to get on that thing, we're leaving in a minute by the looks of things." Taylor stated, picking up her backpack.

"Where ya ridin'?" Daryl asked, standing up, crossbow slung over his shoulder.

"No idea." Taylor shurgged. "I figure they'll have room for me in the RV. If not, I can walk." She chuckled a bit before shrugging. Daryl spat on the ground, as if the comment had left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Ol' man'll let ya into his RV. You ain't walking if you're dependin' on tha mutt over there ta keep an eye out." He looked again at Lucky, who's tongue flopped out the side of his mouth.

Taylor sighed, turning away wordlessly. 'It isn't worth the battle...' she thought to herself. 'I've just found a group of survivors, no need to make enemies...' "Sure, sure," she agreed, walking away with Lucky in tow.

"If I didn't know any better," Shane approached Daryl, who was leaning against his motorcycle watching Taylor walk away, "I'd say you have a thing for the new girl."

"Ain't got no time for a 'thing'," Daryl turned, making air quotations with his fingers. "She's as useless as plunger in a fuckin' outhouse." He stated simply, giving Shane a dirty look.

"Riight," Shane drew out the vowel a bit longer than necessary. "It ain't a bad reflection on you, you know. Means you're still human."

"Fuck off." Daryl said simply, hopping on his bike. "Ain't out here to get some ass..."

Shane shrugged and stalked towards the RV. "Try to get to know the guy..." He mumbled.

* * *

><p>Taylor walked into the RV, nodding at Dale and Glenn before sitting down next to Andrea, watching her take apart her gun. "That's a really nice gun. Not like this ancient thing." Taylor said, pulling out her worn revolver. "I've never even fired it..."<p>

"The first time I fired this," Andrea held up her gun, "I had to kill my own sister." She turned to glare at Taylor, almost envious of her never having fired a weapon.

"I-I...I'm sorry." Taylor's face fell, desperately trying to figure out how to diffuse the situation. "I didn't know..."

"We've all lost someone." Shane said, sliding into the seat across from Taylor, laying his rifle on the table. He offered a small smile towards Andrea before turning to begin taking apart his weapon. Andrea attempted to imitate his method, Taylor simply watching the pair.

"Have you?" Andrea suddenly turned to question Taylor. "Lost someone, I mean..."

Taylor sighed. "I don't know, and that's the worst part. I don't know what happened to my brother and his wife." Taylor laughed a little. "This will sound ridiculous unless you have a twin, but he has to be alive. I'd know if he wasn't. I'd just know."

"What, like some kind of telepathic connection?" Glenn turned, a small smirk on his face.

"Kind of," Taylor shrugged, a smile on her face. "I remember when we were little and he fell out of an apple tree, broke his arm in two places. My arm hurt for days afterwards." She turned, noticing the sceptical looks she was getting. "Like I said, unless your a twin you won't understand."

"There are some things in the world that just can't be explained." Dale chimed in, eyes never leaving the road.

Shane smiled a bit, shaking his head. "That's a sweet piece." He said, looking at Andrea's gun. She handed it over, and he began surveying it, almost ensuring it was in working order.

"Thanks," She responded, looking it over. "It was a gift from my father. He gave it to me just before Amy and I took off on out road trip..." Her eyes glossed over, and Taylor knew she was reliving hat day. "Said two girls on the road should be able to defend themselves."

Both Shane and Taylor smiled slightly. "Smart man, your father." Shane nodded to himself.

"Oh no..." Dale called, catching everyone's attention."Oh, jeez..." Ahead there was a group of abandoned cars, creating an intricate maze that seemed near impossible to navigate in such a big RV. They slowed to a stop, and Taylor could feel the heaviness in the air. 'We could always get out and push them out of the way...' She thought to herself. 'But that would take time...' She heard Daryl's motorcycle coming towards them, and she caught his eye.

"You see a way through?" Dale asked, stealing the thoughts out of Taylor's head. Daryl looked behind him and half nodded, making a motion with his neck that seemed to indicate he wanted them to follow. Everything was quiet as the RV wormed it's way through, although Taylor was long use to the sights. She had been wandering along the highway long enough to become immune to the dead bodies in the cars, the eerie silence where once car horns and polluted air poured from exhaust pipes...

Taylor was pulled from her thoughts by smoke rising from the hood of the RV followed by a loud squeaking noise, causing Dale to sigh. He took his key out of the ignition and angrily opened the door. "I told, I told you a thousand times..."

"Problem, Dale?" Shane asked, coming around with him to the hood of the car.

"Yeah, just the small problem of being stuck in the middle of nowhere with the-" Taylor stood in the doorway of the RV where everyone had gathered, Lucky slipping past her legs to sit on the pavement. Dale had turned to watch Daryl rummage through the trunk of a car. "What the hell is he doing..."

"Ain't gonna find a radiator hose here," Shane called, half to Dale and half to Daryl who continued to pull things out of the back of the car.

"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find..." Daryl responded, looking through what he had already pulled out of the car.

"We can siphon more fuel out of these cars for a start," T-Dog said, walking out from the RV with his gas can in hand, already scoping out which cars were likely to have the most fuel.

"Maybe some water?" Carol called, holding her daughter close.

"Everyone's running low on supplies. I'm down to my last can of pop." Taylor threw in, at which Daryl scoffed.

"This is a graveyard." Lori stated simply, glancing particularly at Taylor, everyone exchanging uneasy glances. "I don't know how I feel about this..."

"Shouldn't we at least take what we need?" Taylor asked, looking out at the sea of cars. "I think we need anything we can find. It's not like they really care, right?"

Rick seemed to agree. "Go look around, find what you can..." He said simply, and everyone went off in their own directions, each looking for different things. Taylor stayed where she was, still trying to process what happened.

"Ain't you gonna go look fer some pop?" Daryl asked, pausing from rummaging through the trunk long enough to catch her brown eyes.

"Yeah, I suppose I should...Do you mind keeping an eye on Lucky? I want to keep him close to the RV, and I don't feel like encroaching on your territory..." She nodded to the car which he had been ransacking a moment ago.

"Ain't my turf. Ain't no ones." He stated, crossing his arms. "I'll watch yer mutt, but if he takes off I sure as fuck ain't chasing him."

"Thanks." Taylor said shortly, offering a smile before turning away and walking off. Daryl glanced at the dog, who sat down beside him.

"Tha fuck you lookin' at?" He asked, turning away from Lucky to rummage through the trunk. "Ain't like I'm gonna hurt ya or anythin', Yer owner'd skin me alive, then I'd have to catch her a squirrel myself. Yer doin' me a favor, lookin' after her." He stopped what he was doing, realizing what he'd just said. He looked around to ensure no one was within earshot before continuing.

"I don' know how the fuck she's alive. Hell, I spent half my fuckin' life outside and damn near didn't survive this hell plague. Don' know who the fuck sent ya, but ya seem to be lookin' after her. Savin' me the trouble." Daryl sighed again.

"Not like I would, mind ya. Look after her, I mean. Hell she could go starve fer all I care. Scavenging fer fuckin' pop...Not even a change of clothes and shes lookin' for pop...Stupid fuckin' city mouse." Daryl pulled out a purple top from the car, examining it. It was a plain v-neck t-shirt, looking almost as though it had never been worn. "Looks 'bout her size, don' it?" He asked the dog, holding it in front of himself out to examine it. Concluding that it could potentially fit her, he draped it over the dogs head. "Make yerself useful, ya ugly mutt."

* * *

><p>Taylor finally found an unlocked car and popped the trunk. She wouldn't risk trying to pop the trunk of a locked car and setting off the alarm, bring every walker in the area towards their RV. She immediately spotted a cooler and opened it, finding two cans of Coke. "Thank-you, universe." Taylor said aloud, wiping off the long-warm water that had once been ice to keep them cold and put them into her nap-sack. It was then that she spotted a bottle in the cooler. "Jack Daniels? Universe, you are far, far too kind..." She pulled it eagerly from the water, kissing the bottle before adding it to her stash.<p>

Taylor turned to ensure she hadn't walked too far ahead of the group, Rick's words fresh in her head, and sure enough T-Dog was only a few cars behind her. She waved him over.

"You'll never believe what I found!" She said excitedly, producing the bottle from her bag.

"Oh boy, it's gonna be a good night!" T-Dog howled, mirroring her excitement. "Go see if you can find more. That's only a twenty-sixer, and we've got enough in our group to kill that in a few minutes."

"On it." Taylor responded, walking away to find another unlocked car. She had tried roughly 5 unsuccessfully, her morale dropped slightly before a hand wrapped itself around her mouth, another around her waist. She started struggling before a calming "shush" was whispered into her ear.

* * *

><p>"Walkers!" Rick half-whispered, at which Lucky's ears perked up. Daryl glanced down at him, swearing.<p>

"Fuckin' city mouse run off on her own!" Daryl ran a hand through his hair, looking down at the dog. He picked the shirt off his head, rolled it into a ball and shoved it in his pocket. "Mutt, find her." Lucky looked up at him, clearly not understanding the order. "Go!" Daryl urged, shoving the dog with his boot. Lucky stood and took a few steps forward, glancing behind to see if Daryl was following. "GO!" Daryl snapped at the dog, stomping on the ground directly behind the dogs hind legs, at which Lucky took off, Daryl staying close behind.

* * *

><p>"Get under the car, walkers are coming," T-Dog urged her, shoving her down. She scuttled under, urging him to follow. He shook his head, "Too small," he explained, before running to the car directly across. He kneeled down, attempting to squeeze under the car, his arm catching the door. Taylor saw the blood squirt from the cut, T-Dog catching the terror in her eyes.<p>

Knowing the scent of blood would lead the walkers directly to him, which in turn meant to her, he took off running. 'No!' Taylor thought to herself. 'He's losing blood, he'll bleed out soon if someone doesn't help him...' Taylor began slowly crawling out from under the car, her arms just reaching sunlight when Lucky intercepted her. He whined and licked her face eagerly. "Lucky, move!" She tried shoving the dog away, but he refused to budge.

"The fuck ya doin? Walkers are comin', get under the fuckin' car!" Daryl told her sternly, kneeling down to her level, trying to get the dog under the car with her.

"Daryl!" Taylor smiled, relieved that he had come. "T-Dog's cut, caught himself on a car door, I've gotta help him! He'll bleed out!"

"You stay under the fuckin' car with your worthless mutt! I'll go get him! Just fuckin' stay put!" Daryl finally succeeded in shoving Lucky under the car with Taylor, after which he took a moment to compose himself. "Stay put." He ordered, significantly calmer than his previous statements. Taylor nodded, clutching at Lucky's fur. Daryl took off running, following the trail of T-Dog's blood.

A few moments later, the walkers slowly started shuffling by. Lucky put his head in his paws, almost as if he was use to the sound.

Taylor froze, waiting for it to pass, hoping that the group was okay. Hoping Daryl found T-Dog in one piece. Hoping the horde passed quickly and quietly.

All anyone had at this point was hope.

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><p><em>Alright! Another chapter down! So remember when I said this would be a 15 chapter thing?...Nope. More.<em>

_I tried to leave the dialogue more or less the same, with a few small changes from the actual episode. Please tell me if you hated it, loved it, however you feel.  
>Anyways, please review! The more reviews I get the more pressed I am to update. ;)<em>

_Thanks for reading!_

_-PassiveAgressive101_


	7. Luck Lost

_Can I just say HOLY HELL guys? I got over 500 hits the day my last chapter was posted. Thank-you SO much for all the reviews, they truly do mean the world to me. I love knowing what my readers are thinking, so thank-you again!_

_Anyways, just a reminder I own nothing in this story._

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><p>Taylor clutched at Lucky's fur, willing him to not chase Daryl and stay put. As much as the dog wasn't technically hers, she had grown rather attached.<p>

'Breathe', she instructed herself, letting out a breathe she hadn't fully realized she'd been holding. Taylor figured she was probably in shock; in all her time spent wandering, she had never seen such a well organized group of walkers; it was almost as though they were all headed in one direction, all aware of each others presence. She shook the thought from her head. They were dead, for heavens sake. They couldn't organize themselves...could they?

She clutched Lucky for a few minutes after what she believed the last walker to pass before slowly scurrying out from under the car, pushing Lucky ahead of her. Looking around, it seemed as if the horde had passed, leaving an eerie silence in it's wake. What had seemed like an eternity had passed in fact only been a few minutes.

It was then that she spotted movement on the highway.

Two walkers chasing the girl she had given a can of pop to, with Rick shuffling his way out from under the car. Her breath caught in her throat; if they caught her, the group would be devastated. "Lucky..." She noticed the hair on the back of the dog's neck stand up, a menacing growl erupting from his throat before he took off. "NO!" She called. If Lucky bit a walker...there was no telling what could happen to him. No one knew if dogs could turn, in all her time wandering she had never seen one. That didn't mean it couldn't happen... "Lucky, GET BACK HERE!" She sprinted after the dog, her feet hitting the pavement faster than she'd imagined they could until a pair of arms stopped her.

"Stop runnin' fer God's sake!" Daryl attempted to calm her down, Taylor struggling to get out of his arms. His words did nothing buy encourage her.

"Let me go, you fucking hick! That's my dog!" Taylor attempted to pull out of his tight grasp to no avail.

"Ye, and he's taken off. Don' mean you haveta. Last thing we need is you gettin' lost in the fuckin' woods to top everythin' off!" He sounded angrier this time, and he tightened his told on her. "He's helpin' Sophia an' Rick, okay?"

"If he bites one of them he could turn!" Taylor managed to wiggle one of her arms free, and used it to try and pull Daryl's other arm off of her.

"You ain' gonna make this easy on me, are ya?" Daryl asked, almost amused by her attempts to get free. He managed to catch her free arm, pulling both of them behind her back and pushing her against the nearest car. "Don'tcha think if he was gonna bite one of 'em, he woulda done it by now? Dog's smart, give 'em that much. Now will ya fuckin stop struggling!" He shouted the last part to get his point across, pressing uncomfortably into her back.

Taylor stopped moving, tears forming in her eyes. "He's my fucking dog, Daryl! He's been looking after me through all this mess! I can't have him turn, I just can't..."

"He'll be fine, ain't ya been listenin' to a fuckin' word I said? Stop cryin..." He let her arms go, and she put them on the hood of the car, burying her head in them. "He ain't gonna get infected."

"Words are...cheap, Daryl! At least if...you had let me follow him..." Her words were chopped by gasps for air.

"At least wha? I'd have to track yer fuckin' ass down, as well as your dogs cause there ain't no way in hell your scrawny ass woulda been able to catch that dog, even the speed ye were goin'." Daryl concluded. "'Ey." Taylor refused to look at him, although she did lift her head from her arms and wiped away her tears, attempting to calm her sporadic breathing. "'Ey!" Daryl said a little more forcefully, Taylor finally turning around, eyes puffy and red from crying.

"Ain' nothin' gonna happen to yer dog, ya'hear? If he don' come back with Rick, I'll look for him m'self." Daryl's eyes looked into Taylor's brown ones, her lip quivering, cheeks stained from her tears. Despite all this, she nodded.

"Thank-you." She managed to choke out, wrapping her arms around his midsection. Daryl stood there dumbfounded, unsure of what to do.

"Ain't a problem'. Mutt keeps me from havin' ta hunt so fuckin' much, feeds your scrawny ass..." Daryl put a hand on her shoulder, trying to figure out how she had ended up wrapped around him. Suddenly she broke away.

"Did you find T-Dog?" She asked, breathing now normal. He nodded. "Yeah...He's bleedin' pretty bad though. Might'a cut an artery." Daryl walked a few feet away, over to a pile of bodies. Picking one of them up and tossing one of them aside, he helped up a blood-soaked T-Dog. "You okay?" Taylor asked, taking his arm and inspecting the wound.

"Do I look okay?" He mumbled, eyes somewhat glossy, vaguely gesturing to his once white shirt that was now half-red.

"No." Taylor admitted, almost laughing before slipping one of his arms over her shoulders. "Come on, let's get Dale to take a look at you..."

* * *

><p>Taylor waited by the highway with Carol, not exchanging words. Taylor had been staring off into the forest for some time until Carol's sobs brought her back into reality. She put an arm around the older ladies shoulders. "Don't worry..." Taylor tried to sound confident, "I'm sure they'll come back."<p>

"Two walkers were chasing my baby. Rick left her alone..." Carol buried her face in her hands.

"No, I didn't." Rick appeared behind the pair, Daryl standing beside him, flanked by Shane and Glenn. "Your dog refused to come with me, stayed right beside Sophia the whole time." Rick elaborated, nodding at Taylor. "She's not alone."

"What is a dog going to do for her?" Carol asked angrily before turning to Taylor, "I mean no disrespect, but all he does is catch squirrels."

"He's a good guard dog, ma'am. Give him the chance, and he'll protect your little girl with his life." Taylor stated, eyes dropping to the road, knowing Lucky would probably die before he let any harm come to Sophia.

"What if your dog attacks a walker, turns, and attacks my baby girl?" Carol asked, a fresh wave of tears bursting forth.

"He's never bit a walker." Taylor stated flatly, clinging to Daryl's earlier words, although a voice in the back of her head voiced the same concerns.

"We're going to head out and try and find them." Rick said shortly, hopping the median separating the highway from the wilderness, Daryl following after giving the pair one last glance.

"I tried to stop him." Taylor finally told Carol almost apologetically. "I didn't want him to leave..."

"Honestly," Carol wiped away the remnants of her tears, turning her gaze once again to the forest, "I'm glad she's got...something with her. There are just so many 'what if's'...I just want my baby girl back." Carol began crying again, Taylor attempting to comfort her.

"I'm sorry..." Taylor said, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm so sorry..."

* * *

><p>"So, you promised her you'd bring her dog back?" Rick asked hesitantly after showing Daryl where Sophia had been hiding.<p>

"If I hadn't she'd a never stopped cryin'. Fuckin' city mouse..." Daryl stated, looking at the ground for any tracks left behind by Sophia or Lucky. "Looks like they did what'cha said, tried headin' back to the highway- Ey!" He called out to Glenn. "Step off ta one side, yer muckin' up the trail!"

"I told her keep the sun on her shoulder and head that way." Rick stated, pointing to where Glenn had previously been standing.

"Kids tired and scared, man. Had her first close encounter with two walkers," Shane stated, looking at Rick. "Gotta wonder how much've whatcha said stuck."

"There's clear tracks over here." Daryl said, diffusing the tension between the two. "She did as ya said, and the fuckin' mutt followed. Spread out." He said simply, pulling himself out of the embankment.

"We're gonna find her." Shane told Rick, almost an apology for his earlier antics. "She's prolly just out hidin' in the bush somewhere."

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><p><em>I'm going to leave it here for now, I just wanted to update to say thank for the great response I got with my last chapter and prove that I do feel more pressed to update when I receive reviews. I know it's short, but maybe I'll write some more when I get home from work. Maybe. ;)<br>_

_As always, tell me what you loved/hated. Thanks for reading!_

-PassiveAggressive101


	8. Drowning the Disappointments

_You guys never cease to amaze me. I come back from a short shift at work, and what do you know? Reviews! :')  
>I'm in a writing mood and I have no assignments to write for now, so I'm going to do another update! I've decided to make this more emotionally focused, with both Daryl and Taylor having conversations about the other. Enjoy!<em>

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>"He cares about you, you know." The sun was just beginning to set, and both Taylor and Carol stayed in the same spot, refusing to budge. When Shane and Glenn had returned to let them know they'd found a trail left by Sophia, the rest of the group had continued scavenging for supplies. Dale and Glenn focused on repairing the RV, but both Carol and Taylor had decided to wait for the Rick and Daryl to return, hoping for good new.<p>

"What?" Taylor asked, being pulled out of her worries by the woman's voice. "Who? Lucky?"

Carol laughed a dry, almost mocking laugh while shaking her head. "Daryl." She said simply, keeping her eyes on the trees for any sign of movement. "He's trying his best to look after you, helping you set up your tent and all. Not to mention keeping you from getting lost in the woods."

Taylor laughed. "Everyone around here is nice to each other. I'm sure if he hadn't helped me, someone else would've jumped in. We all have to stick together."

"No." Carol resounded, her voice stern. "He actually cares about your well being. You don't see it because you haven't been around him as long as I have, as the rest of us have." Taylor bit her tongue. She couldn't argue with that. "For a long time, he never cared about anyone but himself. After his brother..."

"Brother?" Taylor asked, interest peaked. "He never mentioned anything about a brother."

"Can't imagine he would have." Carol resounded, eyes meeting the pavement. "T-Dog and the rest of them left him for dead. It was an accident, mind you," Carol added, noting the alarmed expression on Taylor's face.

"How the hell do you accidentally leave someone for dead?" Taylor asked, astonished that the people she was just starting to like had committed such an act.

"They were stuck in a mall, and he beat the crap out of T-Dog. Said some choice words too, so Rick handcuffed him to a pipe on the roof, gave T-Dog the key. When they were making their escape, T-Dog tried to unlock the handcuffs...ended up dropping it down an open drain. So he ran." Carol explained, shaking her head at certain points. "It's terrible, I know."

"So...Did the walkers get him or what?" Taylor asked, still trying to digest the facts she was being told.

"No, no. T-Dog locked the door with a pad-lock on the way out-"

"Great, so he starved to death. That's a hell of a way to go." Taylor shuddered at the thought.

"You don't look so far from starving yourself." Carol pointed out, to which Taylor shrugged. "But no, he didn't. Rick and the rest of them went back looking for him, turns out he cut off his own hand to get away. No one knows where he went."

"That's...lovely." Taylor concluded sarcastically, suppressing a gag. "I'm honestly speechless."

"The guy was a prick, to be perfectly honest." Carol attempted to comfort her. "I'm not saying he deserved that, but my point is it's nice that he's taken a liking to someone. He was mad about it for a long time."

"Can you blame him? I'd be pretty pissed to if someone left my brother handcuffed to a roof." Taylor shook her head at the thought. "But I'm still saying, if he hadn't come to help me someone else would have."

"Yes," Carol agreed, "But he was there first, wasn't he?"

"They're back." Taylor heard Glenn say, and both Taylor and Carol jumped to their feet. Rick and Daryl approached- only Rick and Daryl; no Sophia, no Lucky.

"You...You didn't find her?" Carol began to sway on her feet, and Taylor could hear the desperation in her tone. Taylor looked to Daryl, who simply shook his head, an apologetic look in his eyes.

"Their trail went cold." Rick replied while hopping the median, back onto the highway. "We'll pick it up again at first light," he tried to reassure her, to no avail.

"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own, to spend the night alone in the woods." Tears began to form in Carol's eyes, Taylor forcing herself to take a deep breath to keep from doing the same.

"Tracking at night's no good...We'd just be trippin' over ourselves, more people'd get lost." Daryl tried to explain, obviously disappointed with being unable to find them.

"But she's only 12 years old! She can't be out there on her own!" Lori stepped in to try and comfort her, placing a hand on either shoulder. "You didn't find anything?"

"I know this is hard," Rick tried to keep Carol from having a full meltdown, "But we're asking you not to panic. We know she was out there-"

"And we tracked her for a while." Daryl threw in, glancing between Carol's frantic state and Taylor's deceivingly stonic one.

"We have to make this an organized effort," Rick coaxed, looking to the rest of the group to try and back them up. "Daryl knows the woods better than anybody, I've asked him to oversee this." Taylor nodded, understanding that Daryl had the know how to get things done quickly and efficiently. He knew how to skin a squirrel, a testament to his survival skills.

"Is that..." Carol pointed at Daryl's pant leg. "Is that blood?"

Everyone looked down, and Taylor's blood went cold when she was the crimsons stains on Daryl's pants. She was sure her heart had stopped beating, and in her head she could hear a faint ringing, almost as if it was far off in the distance.

"He took down a walker." Rick explained, which did nothing to comfort Carol, who then seemed ready to collapse. Daryl's eyes were fixed on Taylor, who had gone ghastly pale. "There was no sign that it was ever anywhere near your daughter."

"How can you know that?" Andrea asked, and Daryl and Rick exchanged uneasy looks.

"We cut the son've a bitch open. Made sure." Daryl stated flatly, his tone a sharp contrast to the bloody endeavor itself. Carol breathed a sigh of relief, sitting down in the median. Lori accompanied her, Taylor choosing to stay standing, her hand running itself through her hair.

"How could you just leave her out there? How could you just leave her?" The anger in Carol's voice was rising, Taylor shaking her head. She was blaming the wrong person – or at least the most wrong, if there was truly one person at fault.

"Those two walkers were on us," Rick sank down to Carol's level, keeping his voice steady. "Leading them away was our best chance."

"It sounded like he didn't have a choice, Carol." Shane said, backing him up.

"How was she suppose to find her way back on her own? She's just a child..." Carol repeated the last phrase a few times, almost like a mantra before allowing Rick to explain.

"It was the only choice I could make." Rick stated, sinking to his knee in order to better look her in the eye.

"I'm sure nobody doubts that," Shane threw in, and Taylor swore she heard an underlying tone of sarcasm, although the moment passed far too quickly for her to know for sure. She caught Daryl's eye, nodding at him, trying to show she understood.

"My little girl got left in the woods..." Carol's voice was almost a whisper, leaving the rest of the group shifting uncomfortably. It seemed as though the conversation was over, and Taylor felt the need to walk it off. She started walking down the highway, no set direction, machete at her side just in case.

* * *

><p>Daryl noticed Taylor taking off, and took a few steps forward. "Don't," Dale warned, stopping Daryl in his tracks. "You've gotta leave the girl alone to do some thinking." Daryl seemed to consider this for a moment, before wordlessly following after Taylor. "Hey," Dale called out after him, taking a few steps forward, "Didn't you hear a word I just said?" Daryl took a deep breath before facing him.<p>

"Look," Daryl tried to keep his tone even, "I know yer tryin' ta be helpful an all, but it ever occur to ya tha' maybe I don' need yer advice?" Daryl asked, crossbow slung over his shoulder.

"I know you want to get close to her, but the girl needs some time to herself." Dale said, his eyes never leaving Daryl's.

"I ain't tryin' ta get close ta her, I made her a fuckin' promise to try and track that useless mutt o'hers!" Daryl's voice rose, fists clenched at his side.

"And you did. You did the best you could." Dale tried to explain, before Daryl cut in.

"Clearly it ain't good enough. Mutt's still missin', Sophia's still missin', now the city mouse is walkin' the highway by herself, prolly gonna end up as some walkers early dinner!" Daryl kicked at a stone on the ground, expressing his frustration with the situation.

"Taylor's been wandering the highway for a long time, Daryl. You don't need to worry about her getting into any trouble. As much as you've been looking after her-"

"I ain't been lookin' after her! Will ya stop sayin' that?" Daryl cut in, clearly angry that Dale believed he would take the time to watch over a girl they'd found wandering the highway.

"You clearly have been. Everyone can see it." Dale refused to back down. "It's not a bad thing, Daryl. Means you've still got a heart in all this mess. Means your still holding onto some of your humanity."

"Fuck off." Daryl finally concluded, turning around only to realize he'd lost sight of Taylor. "You an' the rest of the fuckin' group needta mind yer own God dang business." He walked away from the older man in search of Taylor, trying to figure out what he was going to say when he found her.

* * *

><p>"Hundreds of cars," Taylor said to herself, rummaging through the glove box of an unlocked Jeep, "Hundreds of people, and yet I can't find a fucking cigarette!" She kicked the tire in anger, before continuing on to try and find another unlocked car. To her luck, the car right ahead had been left unlocked. She opened the passenger door and looked around, finding nothing until she opened the glove box, and what she saw brought a smile to her face.<p>

"Belmont's and a lighter?" She said aloud, shaking her head. Right next to it lay the owners drivers license, which she picked up. "Alice Ngo," Taylor read the name aloud, "Thank-you, you classy cigarette smoking girl." She dropped down, leaning against the tire of the car before ripping open a pack and pulling one out.

"Never took ya fer a smoker." Taylor looked up, meeting Daryl's shockingly blue eyes.

"Never took you for a stalker." She retorted, blowing smoke in her general direction. He raised an eyebrow before sitting next to her, eyeing the pack she held in her hands.

"You want one?" She held the pack open to him. He considered for a moment before taking one, snatching the lighter from her other hand.

"Never took you for a smoker." Taylor smirked, imitating his earlier comment, to which Daryl laughed a bit. She rummaged through her bag before pulling out the Jack Daniels, twisting off the lid and taking a swing, following it quickly with a drag from her cigarette.

"Where the fuck did'ja find that?" Daryl asked, looking at the rectangular bottle.

"Car." Taylor shrugged, holding the open bottle out to him. He took a swing of it before placing it on the ground between them.

"I couldn' find yer dog. Or Sophia." Daryl stated before taking a drag of the cigarette.

"Clearly." Taylor felt like giving one words answers for now, waiting for the warmth from the alcohol to spread over he body.

"We'll try again in the mornin'." Daryl continued, unphased by her unwillingness to talk.

"Yup." Taylor responded before picking up the bottle and taking another swing.

"Ya mad at me or summtin'? What's with this one word answer bullshit?" Daryl finally asked, turning to face her. Taylor sighed, meeting his eyes.

"I'm not mad. You did the best you could, better than I could've done. That's for sure." Taylor took yet another swing, Daryl pulling it from her hands.

"Don' want ya goin' back to camp drunk off yer ass." He explained before taking a swing herself.

"You have to get over this 'city mouse can't look after herself' thing." Taylor stated, snatching it back from him. "I've done fine by myself up to this point."

"That's 'cause ya had a fuckin' dog with ya." Daryl accused, shaking his head. "And it ain't a thing. It's a fuckin' fact." He put the bottle to the far side of him. "Now, ya gonna bitch 'bout me not findin' yet dog or what?"

Taylor looked at him, perplexed. "Why would I bitch when you tried?" She asked, taking a drag off her cigarette.

Daryl shook his head. "Jus' use to it is all..." He took a drag, looking off into the distance, a glassy look in his eyes.

"What, your brother?" Daryl coughed, clearly not expecting her to say anything about that.

"How tha hell do ya know about him?" Daryl sputtered, almost angry with the knowledge she had acquired while he had been tracking.

"People talk." Taylor said simply, shrugging. "Are you trying to tell me you followed me out here to get bitched at, Daryl? I mean I could if you really want me to, but I personally do not feel compelled to bitch your ass out. Yet." She added as an afterthought, causing Daryl to laugh.

"Naw, I suppose that wasn' tha only reason. Wanted ta make sure ya didn' go into cryin' mode again, get distracted and end up as some stray walkers appetizer." Daryl teased, taking a swing from the Jack Daniels.

"I could be a full meal." Taylor rebutted, at which Daryl scoffed.

"Whatever ya say, city mouse." He stated, putting his cigarette out on the pavement. "Ya better go start settin' up yer tent, s'already dark." He noted, the breeze cooling, and Taylor had begun to shiver. He stood up, waiting for her to follow

"Yeah, probably. Wanna give me a hand?" She held her hand towards him, at which Daryl rolled his eye.

"Ye ain' drunk already, are ya?" He asked, pulling her up to her feet. She swayed dangerously, and Daryl slipped one of her arms over his shoulder to balance her.

"I'm not drunk, you idiot. I'm tired." She pulled her arm from around his neck. "Plus, I haven't eaten all day. That Jack is all I've got in my system." Taylor shook her head, attempting to straighten the world. "Daryl?" She asked, turning her head to face him. He walked close, ready to catch her if she fell.

"Hm?" He responded, seemingly not interested.

"Please find my dog." She pleaded, her brown eyes filled with fear. Daryl simply nodded, unsure of what he could possibly say to comfort her.

"I'll try." He said simply, hoping to ease her pain. Taylor nodded, leaning against a car for support as she was slowly losing her balance. "Yer drunk." Daryl stated, a small smirk forming on his face.

"I haven't eaten." She repeated, holding a hand to her head. "Thank-you, by the way." At that she collapsed, leaning against the drivers door.

"Okay, okay there city mouse." Daryl grabbed her by the elbow, pulling her back to her feet. "Come on, I got'cha."

"How many times do I have to tell you, Daryl," Taylor laughed, snatching her elbow back, "I can look after myself." Taylor tripped over a small crack in the road, landing on her hands and knees, causing Daryl to laugh.

"A'least one more time, city mouse." He offered her his hand this time, pulling her up yet again. "Come on, I'll help ya set up yer tent. Ya ain't gonna be able ta do it. Next time, don' get fuckin' drunk before we set up camp."

Taylor giggled in response, leaning closer into him, wrapping an arm around his waist. "I promise."

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><p><em>Fin! For now, that is. I think this is the longest chapter I've written...Yup.<em>

Anyways, please review and tell me what you like/hate, and as always, thank-you for reading!

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	9. Messes

_Updating again! This will probably be the last one for a while. I don't mean to hate on Andrea, I do like her character, and Taylor and she will resolve their differences later, but for now she's playing the bad guy. For now. _

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>The first thing Taylor noticed when she woke up was that the ground was abnormally hard. The second thing was that the ground was really warm. The third was that the ground was moving rising and falling slowly, almost as though it was breathing...<p>

Taylor sat up far too quickly, looking down to find Daryl fast asleep beneath her. Her head began to spin, vomit rising in her throat. She swallowed it, knowing that if she was going to wake up Daryl it wasn't going to be with stomach acid and partially digested Jack Daniels. 'Okay,' she told herself 'What do you remember from last night?' She drew a blank, only remembering crawling inside her tent; not the assembly, not anything after. 'Well, he's still got his clothes on,' she thought to herself, 'that's a good sign,'...

"Uhh..." Her voice came out as a whisper. "Daryl..." She shook his arm, still partially wrapped around her waist. His only response was to turn his head away and pull her back towards him. "Daryl, wake up!" He grunted in his sleep, eyes refusing to open. "I swear to God Daryl if you don't wake up this instant..."

"M'awake," Daryl stated, keeping his eyes closed, "Jus' wonderin' if yer sober yet." A small smirk formed on his face.

"I think so...and what do you mean 'yet'?" Taylor asked, attempting to free herself from his side. Daryl refused to let her go just yet, keeping her pinned to him.

"This'll be the third time ya woke me up t'night." His eyes finally opened, and Taylor could see that he was extremely sleep deprived. He had deep bags under his blue eyes, and he looked at her accusingly.

"I...what? How did you get in here, anyways?" Taylor sputtered, rubbing the sleepiness from her own eyes, still pressed into Daryl's side, enjoying it more than she'd ever vocalize.

"Ya don' remember nothin', do ya?" Daryl rubbed her shoulder, shaking his head. He brought his free hand to his face, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You ain' gonna believe me, city mouse," He finally concluded, looking at the side of the tent, refusing to meet her eyes.

"Just tell me, for fuck sakes." Taylor was grumpy, she couldn't help but be short with him. Her head pounded, and even him rubbing her shoulder with his hand didn't soothe her very well. Her stomach felt like it was on fire, and her eyes hurt even though there was no light out yet.

"Ya asked me- no, ya didn' ask, ya demanded I stay." Daryl told her, looking into her eyes. Taylor just sat there for a moment, trying to digest what he'd just said.

"I...erm...what?" Taylor couldn't quite internalize what he'd just said, blood rushing to her face. She could tell that Daryl wasn't completely comfortable with the situation either, as he looked away quickly.

"Ya started cryin' 'bout Lucky, said ya don' like sleepin' alone, said somethin' 'bout nightmares..." Daryl turned his gaze back to her, searching for an answer.

"Yeah...I get night terrors sometimes. Usually when I'm alone." Taylor admitted, focusing on a spot of dirt on his shirt, trying everything to avoid looking in his eyes. "It was the worst when I was on the road alone, that was a rough point in time," she admitted, fingers tracing the shape of the stain. "Went to bed, fought for my life in my dreams, woke up to find I'd attracted a few walkers with my cries. It wasn't very restful."

Daryl nodded before continuing. "So I tol' ya ta come sleep in the RV, plenty of people in there. Ya shook yer head, sayin' you didn' wanna intrude, said I'd already set up tha tent, might as well use it. I tried ta leave in the middle o'the night so ya wouldn' wake up like this, but ya kept wakin' up fer no reason, talkin' nonsense 'bout shit, then goin' back to sleep..." Daryl explained, almost embarrassed that he'd been forced to spend the whole night with her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to put you in an awkward position like this with the rest of them..." Taylor explained, worried about the group would think of the pair. Daryl shook his head.

"Tol' 'em I was goin' huntin, no one knows I'm here." Daryl looked away again, his hand still rubbing the back of her shoulder.

"Ah...I see. Thank-you." Taylor smiled against his side, grateful that he'd tried to cover for her drunken neediness.

"Don' think nothin' of it, kay? Jus...Don' tell no one." He said, meeting her eyes again, and she could see the pleading in them. She nodded.

"Not a word." She swore, adjusting herself against his side. Taylor could feel him nod, his muscles moving underneath her. She never realized how well muscled he was; sure, her had great arms from carrying around his crossbow, but his stomach was so well muscled...

"I'm sleepin' here til we find yer dog." Daryl blurted, and Taylor could feel him tense under her. It was as though he was waiting for an answer, even though his statement hadn't exactly been a question.

"Sure, but why?" Taylor asked. She wasn't going to deny company – she'd been alone for a long time, but with Lucky gone she was not use to it anymore. Even if he slept on the other side of the tent from now on, at least she'd find some comfort in his breathing. Beside, if anything attacked in the middle of the night, he was very good with his crossbow...

"Don' need ya havin' no night terror, screamin' yer head off and attractin' a bunch o'walkers this way." He stated, almost a bit too quickly as though he had been rehearsing the line in his head for a while. Taylor smiled inspite of herself.

"Fair enough." Taylor said, pulling herself up out of his arm to stretch. Daryl sat up with her, eyes pinned to hers.

"Here." He pulled a wad of purple fabric out of his pants pocket, holding it out to here. "Tha' shirt is gonna fall apart soon, might as well have this." Daryl told her as she took it from him, unrolling it. "Tha mutt found it." He lied as she held it up, "Thought it might fit ya."

Taylor smiled a sad smile at the mention of her lost companion before pulling Daryl into a hug. "Thank-you," she said, resting her head on his broad shoulder. He wrapped his arm around the back of her neck.

"Don' mention it." Daryl responded, pulling away slightly. "We shoul' prolly get going, or me a'least, should start lookin' again soon..."

"I'm going too." Taylor decided, attempting to shake the ache out of her head.

"No, ya ain't." Daryl's voice was firm, almost as though he had known this would happen.

"Why not?" Taylor challenged, not willing to back down. "I've taken down plenty of walkers, I'm another set of eyes, I've got my own weapon...There's no real reason for me not to go." Daryl shook his head again and opened his mouth to speak, but Taylor cut him off. "Look, you'll be there won't you? You'll have my back if I somehow fuck up and miss one, same as I'll have yours." Taylor had a sneaking suspicion this had little to do with her physical capabilities and more of his 'city mouse can't look after herself' idea, which she intended to disprove.

Daryl seemed to consider this for a minute, running a hand through his hair. "You stay in my sight, y'hear? Don' need ya goin' missin'." He said shortly, before standing up as much he could while grabbing his crossbow.

"Got it." He nodded again before unzipping the tent and leaving, allowing Taylor to change into her new top.

* * *

><p>"Everybody takes a weapon." Rick threw down a bunch of weapons in a case on the hood of an abandoned car, everyone looking at them eagerly.<p>

"There aren't the kind of weapons we need. What about the guns?" Andrea asked, obviously very furious about the situation. Taylor couldn't quite understand why; the weapons Rick had were quieter, lighter, more overall effective than a gun in her opinion.

"Haven't we been over that?" Shane called from behind Taylor, leaning against the side of the RV. "Rick and I are carrying. We can't have people popping off rounds every time the tree rustles."

"It's not the trees I'm worried about." Andrea stated flatly.

"Say someone fires at the wrong moment, and a heard happens to be passing by. See, then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it." Shane retorted, lifting his bag onto his back.

"She's carrying, and we don't even know her!" Andrea pointed at Taylor accusingly, at which Taylor flinched back. "She's never even fired a gun, for Christ' sake! Why aren't you taking her weapon away, huh?" Andrea asked Shane, still pointing accusingly at Taylor.

"I-I don't..." Taylor unholstered her weapon, clutching it for a moment. "I prefer having it, just in case."

"So do I." Andrea stated flatly, turning to face her. "This isn't an attack on you, don't get me wrong. I'm trying to prove how backwards this situation is. I've been here since the beginning, and they take my weapon away, but you? We just found you, and you're allowed to keep a gun." She shook her head. "It's backwards."

Taylor took a deep breath in, still clutching her gun. Then, wordlessly, she handed it to Rick. "If it's going to be a problem," she said coldly, "and cause problems in the group, have it." Rick nodded at her in gratitude, but Andrea continued.

"So now we're down a gun."

"Look," Taylor turned around to face her, obviously a bit pissed off. "Clearly, there is nothing I can do to make you happy. I keep my gun, it causes a problem. I hand my gun over, and you feel we're down a weapon." Andrea seemed a bit shocked that she would say anything on the matter, but Taylor continued. "Next time, figure out which outcome you want first before you start running your mouth."

"I-" Andrea started, before thinking better of it and simply crossing her arms. Taylor nodded at her before turning back to Rick.

"Idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side." Daryl announced to the group, who were busy inspecting their weapons. "Chance are, she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark." He finished.

"Stay quiet, stay sharp." Rick advised, turning towards Dale. "Keep space between you, but always stay within sight of each other."

"Everybody assemble your packs." Shane told the group, heaving his own onto the hood of the car.

"Dale, you keep on those repairs. We need to be ready to move." Rick asked of the older man, to which Taylor couldn't help but smile.

"Don't want to stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there." He wished, looking towards the dense forest. "Bring Sophia back."

"Keep an eye on Carl while we're gone?" Rick asked, before his son spoke up.

"I'm going with you." It wasn't a question but a statement from the young boy. "You need people right? To cover as much ground as possible." He elaborated at his father's frustrated face.

"He has all of you to look after him." Dale pitched in. "I'd say he's in good hands..."

"Okay...Okay." Rick hesitantly agreed, "But always within our sight, no exceptions."

"Same rules apply to yer ass." Daryl teased Taylor, appearing at her side. "You didn' needta hand over yer weapon, y'know. Tha' ones been through a mess, took away her gun ta make sure...Well, ta make sure she didn' opt out." Daryl explained to a confused Taylor.

"I didn't want to cause trouble. I'm sure I'll be fine either way." She shrugged. She had never really used her gun anyways, so it wasn't a huge deal to hand over. "I always figured I'd only use it to opt out anyways, but with so many of us here I doubt there'll be a problem." Daryl smirked a bit.

"Ye, shouldn' be a problem...Here, we should give 'em two some privacy." Daryl guided her shoulder away from where Andrea was approaching Dale.

"No, no." Andrea called out to Daryl. "Let her stay. She should be asking for her gun back, too." Daryl turned to Taylor, who simply shrugged.

"Andrea, I'm begging you, don't put me in this position." Dale pleaded, holding his hands up in a half defensive position.

"I'm not going out there without my gun, Dale. I'll even say please." Andrea stated, holding her gun out.

"What's going on?" Taylor whispered to Daryl, genuinely confused about the situation.

"Don' sweat it. Come on, let's give 'em some privacy." Daryl once again started leading her away, out of earshot of the quarrel between Andrea and Dale.

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><p><em>I'm going to stop there, because I need some input on something that will (hopefully, if I can find time to write at the rate I've been writing these past few days) be coming up in the next few chapters. And I will warn you, I have no idea what is going to happen to Lucky because I have no idea what's going to happen to Sophia in the series. =[ Don't spoil this for me, either, if any of you do happen to know!<em>

**_I need to know what you guys think would be best as far as Taylor and Daryl's sexual relationship, as I do see them having sex in the foreseeable future with them sharing a tent and all. As you can see, this fanfic is so far rated T for Teen. Should I leave the sex open ended, as in go as far as kissing/fondling before a break and picking up after the act, or write a full on sex scene and change the rating of this fanfic? The other alternative I'm offering you guys is to keep this T, and have all my sexual encounters between the two published in a separate fanfic that I'd create._**

_**I'd love your input on this, as you are my readers and ultimately it is you I am trying to please. Also, note that these will be the first ever sex scenes I will ever be attempting, so they may or may not be fantastical.** _

_As always, review to tell me what you loved/hated about this chapter, or just send me a PM if you want to chat with me in general, about the fanfic or about life. I love talking with my readers.  
><em>

_Thanks for reading!_

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	10. Church

_That episode had me biting my nails the whole time. I actually thought they were going to kill him off. Jesus Christ Daryl's tough._

Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story.

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><p>It was just as quiet in the woods as it was on the road, Taylor noted. The silence was suffocating, worse though, because at least the road was open; cars obscured the path of course, but they only obscured it, unlike the trees which made a clear path impossible. You had to create your own.<p>

'That's why Daryl thrives here,' Taylor thought to herself, watching him weave his way through the trees with a grace only a hunter could possess, one that only someone from the city could admire. He made it look so easy to the trees and bushes that made it into a maze for anyone not use to it. He made his own path.

He suddenly stopped, holding up a hand to halt the group before gesturing to a tent slightly ahead of them. "She could be in there," He said to Rick as the men examined it, not daring to get any closer. Daryl cast a backwards glance at Taylor, as though to make sure she stayed where she was. He clearly didn't want her taking any part in this.

"Carol," Rick called to the older woman as Daryl drew his knife, approaching the tent with caution. "Call out to her. If she's in there, she best hear your voice first."

Carol nodded, "Sophia," she called out, her voice cracking a little, "Sophia baby, it's mommy." Taylor could hear the almost begging tone in her voice, while Daryl stood patiently waiting for any signs of movement. After a moment, he began unzipping the tent slowly as to not alarm anyone or anything that may be inside, turning back to cover his mouth before taking a step inside. Rick stayed outside, coughing at whatever he smelled from inside the tent.

"Daryl?" Taylor called after a moment, but to response came from inside. "Daryl?" Carol echoed before Daryl emerged empty handed.

"What's inside?" Carol asked, a hint of fear in her voice.

"Man opted out." Daryl said simply, almost sadly, shaking his head.

Taylor jumped at the sudden noise, something she thought she'd never hear again. 'Church bells?' Her mind screamed. Everyone turned, trying to locate where the sound was coming from before Rick took off running, leading the way.

"What direction?" Shane asked, surveying the woods.

"I think there." Rick pointed ahead of the group, "I think," he added almost as an afterthought.

"It's near impossible to tell out here." Taylor stated, one hand gripped on her machete.

"Of we can hear them, maybe Sophia does too," Carol said, hope suddenly in her voice.

"Someone's ringing those bells...Maybe calling others." Glen threw in, mirroring Carol's enthusiasm.

"Or they could be signalling that they found her." Andrea put in her two cents.

"Or she could be ringing them herself." Rick stated, "Come on." He said simply before taking off to a run again.

They emerged into a graveyard, much to Taylor's dismay. She'd always hated graveyards, but at least these bodies had stayed in the ground. The church lay in the middle of it.

"Can't be it." Shane shook his head while saying the words. "Ain't got no steeple." Rick continued towards the building despite Shane's words. "Rick," Shane called out, trying to be reasonable, Rick ignoring him and sprinting towards it. The group followed, finding the bright red doors rather easily. Rick waved his hand, telling them to stay quiet before slowly opening the door.

'Oh God,' Taylor thought to herself as soon as she saw the three walkers sitting in the church rows. It was an eerie sight, almost as though the dead were praying. Taylor took an unconscious step back, bumping into Daryl, who pushed her behind him. The walkers slowly turned to face them, and Taylor froze. The atmosphere was too strange, too eerie, so wrong. Daryl raises his crossbow, already anticipating their movements. The walkers all rose to attention, aware that there was food present. Lori handed Rick a machete, who then took a few steps towards one of the walkers.

Daryl lowered his crossbow, taking the axe Glenn offered him. Rick took down the first walker; a quick slice to the head, deep enough to impact the brain while Shane made a quick stab through the second ones eye.

The third zombie, the one with a veil over it's head, seemed almost alarmed by it's companions deaths. Daryl began making a chirping sound, at which the walker turned to face him. He cut it across the face, deep enough to snag it's brain, causing it to collapse in a heap on the floor.

The disappointment was palatable in the air. "Sophia!" Rick yelled, punching the wall of the church as Daryl approached the giant crucafix at the front of the church.

"Hey JC," he addressed Jesus on the cross, "You takin' requests?"

"I told you Rick," Shane approached Rick while shaking his head in a disappointed fashion. "There's no steeple."

Taylor jumped for the second time that day at the sound of the Church bells. Daryl ran down the aisle pushing past the group, Taylor following a close second. Daryl looked up, spotting a speaker near the roof of the church, blaring the sound of church bells. Glenn approached the control box, shutting off the power to it; there were never any church bells, only the speaker giving them false hope.

"A timer..." Daryl raised his axe above his head, gesturing to it, "It's on a timer."

"I think I'm gonna go back in for a bit..." Taylor could hear the defeat in Carol's voice as she retreated inside the church, Lori following after, clearly in need of some prayer time. Everyone seemed to go their separate ways to collect themselves, leaving Taylor standing there. She looked towards the treeline, retreating back there, wanting to give everyone their space.

She stared off into the trees; they weren't her domain. They never had been. She'd never gone camping, forsaking the great outdoors for the safety of four walls, soon after exchanging that for an airplane. She'd seen the world, at least all the concrete parts. Not the wilderness, not the green part, not the unsafe part. But the whole world was unsafe now; she had to learn to dwell in unsafe waters. 'Sink or swim,' she thought bitterly to herself.

"Hey," For the third time in less than half an hour, Taylor jumped, turning quickly. She came face to chest with Daryl, who held a hand up. "Didn' mean ta scare you." He said, smirking at being able to sneak up on her.

"Sorry," Taylor apologized, lowering her head a bit. "I was just thinking," she turned her head back to the forest, letting a small sigh escape her lips, mirroring her frustration with her thoughts.

"'Bout?" Daryl asked, following her gaze to the treeline, seeing nothing particularly interesting.

"Don't worry about it." Taylor replied, smiling a bit. "How you feeling?" She asked, attempting to change the subject.

Daryl scoffed. "Ain't nothin' ta be shakin' up 'bout." He told her simply, shaking his head.

"It's the fact that it's a church..." Taylor let her statement trail off, not wanting to complete it and spill her thoughts. They were scattered and disorganized at best.

"I needta ask you something," Daryl seemed to understand that Taylor didn't want to discuss what she had just witnessed, redirecting the conversation.

"Shoot." Taylor didn't take her eyes off the tree line, her mind still buzzing, fire burning in her stomach.

"If we were ta die tomorrow," Daryl paused, seeming to consider his words. "If we were ta die tomorrow," he repeated taking a step forward, closing the small gap between them and towering over Taylor, "What would ya regret not doin' before ya went?" He asked, Taylor looking up and meeting his blue eyes, which seemed to be searching for something.

Taylor's mouth went dry, her mind going a mile a minute. "I-" She stopped herself, trying to come up with a reasonable answer, turning her head towards her feet. "I guess-" she turned her head up to look at him when his lips came crashing down on hers.

Taylor froze, attempting to process what was happening before slinking her arms around his neck. He was exceptionally warm, his lips being no exception. They moved against hers quickly, his hand working it's way to the back of her neck. She matched his fast pace, biting on his lower lip, asking for entry. He happily obliged, and their tongues began battling for dominance at which Daryl seemed to be winning before he pulled away.

"Tha' was mine." He stated, pressing his forehead against hers, hand moving from the back of her neck to the small of her back, Taylor not releasing her arms from around his neck. "What's yours?" He asked, continuing to hold her with one arm.

"You made me forget." She smiled against his chest, taking in his scent. A mix of sweat and forest, a salty sweet mixture. She couldn't help but smile. She felt Daryl laugh. "I ain't apologizin, if that's wha yer waitin' for."

"I'm not," Taylor pulled away hesitantly, "But how about we save this conversation for tonight? I think we should be leaving soon..."

Daryl smirked slightly at her statement. "Prolly right." He said simply, pulling back. "Come on." They walked back towards the church, where the group was beginning to reassemble.

* * *

><p>"So this is the plan?" Carol sat down on a log, wiping the sweat from her forehead.<p>

"Guess the plan is to widdle us down into smaller and smaller groups." Daryl replied with a shrug, leaning against a tree.

"With knives and pointy sticks." Andrea remarked bitterly, biting her bottom lip. "I see you have a gun." She accused Lori, who looked up from her bag.

"You want it?" Lori asked semi-sarcastically. "Here," She held it out to the blonde woman, "Take it, I'm sick of the looks your giving me."

Taylor ran a hand through her hair, turning to Daryl who shrugged at her. Andrea took the gun and Lori sat on the log next to Carol. "I can't imagine what you're going through, and I would do anything to stop it but you have got to stop blaming Rick." She told the woman flatly, anger seeping through her words in small amounts. "It is in your face every time you look at him He didn't hesitate did he? Not for a second. I don't know if anyone else would've been able to make the choices he had to. I don't know that anyone could have done it any differently." Carol looked at the floor, almost ashamed of her behaviour. "Anybody?" Lori addressed the group now, meeting Daryl's eyes. Taylor simply shook her head. "He's not perfect, but if you think you can do this without him go right ahead. No one is stopping you."

A few moments passed before Andrea handed the gun back to Lori. "We should keep moving." She said simply. The group headed forward, Daryl and Taylor staying behind for a moment.

"When we get back to camp," Taylor turned to address him, "You need to explain to me what that's all about."

"After you give me yer answer." Daryl smirked at her, before pushing her ahead of him.

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><p><em>Whoot! Another chapter done. As always, thank-you for reading, and let me know what you think by clicking that review button!<em>

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	11. Forest Flashbacks

_Hey guys, can I just say thank-you for the amazing response I received because of my last chapter! None of you saw that coming, eh? That's exactly what I wanted._

_I'm trying to keep Taylor fairly well rounded (she's obviously not perfect, and I don't want her to be) so thank-you for all your input on that. Now, back to the story!_

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>Taylor couldn't help but worry. The rest of the group didn't seem to acknowledge or think anything of it, but it was a gunshot for Christs' sake. They knew it was risky to fire a gun, Rick and Shane more than anyone, and yet they'd heard it. They'd all heard it. But at the moment, it was impossible to find out why.<p>

"You still worrying about it?" Andrea stopped, turning to speak to Lori who had begun looking off in the distance.

"That was a gun shot." Lori replied, not bothering to face the younger woman.

"We all heard it." Daryl told her, shrugging slightly.

"Why one? Why just one gunshot?" Lori asked, looking slightly panicked. Taylor couldn't help but mirror her emotions, having a creeping feeling in her stomach that something just wasn't right.

"Maybe they took down a walker..." Daryl offered, not looking too sure of his response.

"Don't patronize me." Lori told him firmly. "Shane and Rick wouldn't risk a gunshot to take down a single walker." She shook her head angrily. "They'd do it quietly."

"Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol questioned.

"Yeah, unless something went wrong..." Taylor responded without thinking, seeing the fearful look on the older woman's face.

"Not a lot we can do about it anyway." Daryl said, turning his back from the group, facing towards where the highway was believed to be. "Can't be runnin' 'round these woods chasing echos." Taylor sighed. As much as she hated to admit it, he was probably right; all that would accomplish was them getting lost, something that they couldn't afford to do. Too much was at stake.

"So what do we do?" Lori questioned, obviously angry about the situation.

"Same as we been. Beat the bush for Sophia and work our way back to the highway." Daryl told her, keeping a level head despite the absolute hurricane that was the situation.

"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the RV." Andrea tried to comfort them, but no one seemed particularly convinced.

Taylor stood beside Carol, trying to find words to comfort the woman. "I'm sorry for what you're going through, both of you." Andrea seemed to read her mind, speaking to the Carol. "I know how you feel," she added as an afterthought. Taylor simply nodded her head, trying to keep a positive outlook on Lucky, but knowing that if it came down to it, he'd be dead long before Sophia. He'd die protecting her.

"I suppose you do," Carol replied, a sad smile on her face. "Thank-you."

"Thanks," Taylor said simply, walking back towards Daryl. She didn't know what to make of Andrea, her behavior revolved around the idea of being allowed to handle a gun, something Taylor couldn't comprehend. Taylor had only carried one in case she was swarmed and didn't want to die being feasted on by a horde of hungry walkers; besides that, they were almost useless. In such a large group, having a gun seemed like almost a bad idea, but who was she to say. She'd never been in a group until she'd found them.

"It's the not knowing that's killing me." Carol told Andrea, Taylor pausing her walk to listen. "I just keep hoping and praying she don't wind up like Amy." Pain crossed Andrea's features, and suddenly Taylor recalled their conversation in the RV. Amy must have been her sister...The sister Andrea had been forced to kill.

Carol seemed to realize the impact of her words, immediately trying to comfort her. "That's the worst thing I've ever said..."

Andrea shook her head, blinking back tears. "We're all hoping and praying with you, for what it's worth." Andrea assured her.

"I'll tell you what it's worth," Daryl marched past Taylor to come between the two women. "Not a damn thing." Taylor's eyes widened at his words. How could he be so cold? "It's a waste of time all this hopin' and prayin'." Taylor opened her mouth to say something, but he continued. "We're gonna locate that lil girl, and the mutt, an' they're gonna be jus' fine." Taylor let her breath out, relieved that he hadn't meant what she'd initially believed. "Am I the only one zen 'round here?" Taylor couldn't help but smile at the last comment, catching Lori's eye, who was doing the same. She gestured for Lori to follow, and they both did, smiles on their faces.

The walk was quiet for a long while, hours possible until Daryl broke the silence. "We're losing light," he said simply, looking at the group.

"Let's head back." Lori replied, machete slung over her shoulder.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Carol questioned, ensuring that everyone was still on board to continue the search.

"Yeah," Lori nodded her head the whole time while speaking as to assure Carol, "We'll find 'em tomorrow." Taylor smiled at everyone's commitment; if Lucky had run off while she was on her own, she probably would have gone to pieces and ended up killing herself looking for him.

The silence sank over the group again, and Taylor let her mind wander. She was surprised that they hadn't encountered a walker for a while, although she had to question how many would reasonable have ended up in the woods scavenging for food. The cities were much more optimal, particularly the airport.

"_Good luck, really." Taylor told Chris, giving him one last hug before lifting the heavy bag onto her shoulders. It was filled with everything and anything Chris could afford to spare; pop, bags of peanuts, bags of chips, forks, spoons, a couple bottles of water, and a box of vitamins. The people who'd promised them fuel had met them outside, telling them inside was havoc before quickly fuelling the plane and boarding, most with nothing more than the clothes on their backs._

"_Keep it," Chris told her, a sad smile on his face. "I have a feeling you're going to need it a lot more than I will. Do you know where you're going?"_

"_Vaguely," she admitted, adjusting the bag on her shoulders. Chris sighed, pulling a piece of paper from his pocket and handing it to her._

"_A map?" She asked, unfolding it. "Thank-you!" She shoved it into her back pocket, knowing it would be useful later._

"_Figured you'd need it. Look, just remember, aim for the head. Nothing else'll kill them." His eyes pleaded with her, almost knowing that hell was waiting for her out there._

"_Got it." Her voice shook a little She'd never had to kill, well, anything. She hadn't even been there when they had the family cat put down, attempting to avoid any close encounters with death. She took a deep, steadying breath. "Chris," She looked up at him one last time, trying to find the proper words to thank him before he interrupted._

"_If you intend on leaving," He told her, "I'd go now, otherwise you'll end up wanting to stay. Not that I'd mind..."_

"_You're right. Goodbye, Chris." She descended the stairs they'd set up to board their passengers, before Chris spoke one last time. _

"_If this thing blows over," He yelled to her when she was halfway down the stairs, "Please, please, please call me! You've been the best." She could hear the sadness in his voice; he was obviously convinced she was making the wrong decision. She nodded at him one last time before running down the stairs and making a break for the pilot's entrance into the airport._

"How much further?" Lori asked, snapping Taylor back to reality.

"Not much," Daryl told them. "Maybe 100 yards, as the crow flies."

"Too bad we're not crows." Taylor snickered at her comment although her own legs were aching. When she was on her own she could walk at her own pace, making as much or as little distance as she had wanted to. She'd never felt compelled to push herself.

Taylor shook the thoughts from her head, before a scream caused her to jump. She looked around to take stock of the group, noting that Andrea was missing.

"Andrea?" Carol called, being the first to figure out which direction the scream was coming from and taking off. The rest of the group followed after, all trying desperately to figure out what was wrong.

Taylor saw it; Andrea was on the ground, a walker trying to get close enough to take a bite. Her breath caught in her throat; as much as she wasn't fond of her, Andrea didn't deserve to go like that. Before Taylor could process what was happening, a horse passed by Andrea, swinging a club to take out the walker.

"Lori?" The woman on the horse called out, looking between Andrea and the rest of the group. "Lori Grimes?"

"I'm Lori." Lori called, a puzzled look on her face.

"Rick sent me, you gotta come now. There's been an accident. Carl's been shot." The woman hurriedly explained, "He's still alive, but you gotta come now." Lori looked at her, as though trying to figure out whether or not she was serious. "Rick needs you, just come!" The stranger urged, and Lori took of her backpack to climb onto the horse.

"Whoa!" Daryl exclaimed, looking at Lori. "We don't know this girl! Ya can't get on that horse!"

"Rick said you had others on the highway?" The woman questioned, stunning Daryl. "That big traffic snare?"

"Uh-huh." Glenn answered, speaking for the first time.

"Backtrack to Fairburn road. Two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox; the names Green." The stranger explained before taking off, Lori on the back end of the horse.

The zombie moaned from the ground, beginning to recover from the blow to the head, even sitting up. "Shut-up." Daryl said simply before shooting it with his crossbow. Taylor stepped forward to help up Andrea, who took it gratefully.

"You okay?" Taylor questioned, surveying for bite marks.

"Fine," The woman said shortly, brushing herself off before continuing forward. Taylor sighed, trying not to take it personally; she'd just been attacked, she can't imagine she'd have any manners either.

* * *

><p>"I won't do it." Carol told the group, "I can't just leave."<p>

Dale tried to be the voice of reason. "Carol, the group is split. We're scattered and weak..."

"What if she comes back and we're not here?" Carol accused angrily. "What could happen?"

"If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful." Andrea agreed, and Taylor couldn't help but nod.

"We can't just leave her to fend on her own indefinitely." Taylor mirrored the others sentiments.

"Okay," Daryl agreed, nodding. "We gotta plan for this. I say tomorrow mornin's soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave her some supplies. I'll hold here tonight, stay with the RV." He said, meeting Taylor's eyes.

"If the RV's staying, I am too." Dale said, placing his hand on his vehicle.

"Thank-you." Carol said, clearly grateful at the gesture. "Thank-you both." Both men nodded.

"I'm in." Andrea raised her hand, volunteering to stay with the RV that night.

"I'd prefer to stay, if no one minds." Taylor asked, unsure as to how the others felt about it. Daryl nodded.

"Well if you're all staying-" Glenn was interrupted by Dale.

"No, not you Glenn, you're going. Take Carol's Cherokee." The older man told him, clearly not in the mood for arguing.

"Me?" Glenn asked, gesturing to himself. "Why is it always me?" The question seemed more rhetorical to Taylor.

"We have to find this farm," Dale explained calmly, trying to soothe Glenn. "Reconnect with our people and see what's going on. But most important, you have to get T-Dog there. His cut's infected and he's got a real bad blood infection." Taylor noted the thoughtful look on Daryl's face. "Get him to that farm, see if they have antibiotics. If not, T-Dog will die. No joke." At this point, Daryl began walking towards his bike, much to the confusion of the rest of the group. He picked up a rag from the seat, throwing it over his shoulder with a small huff before rummaging through a bag attached to it, returning with a clear bag filled with pill bottles.

"Keep your oily rags off my brother's motorcycle." Daryl tossed the towel towards Dale who caught it. "Why'd you wait so long ta say anythin'?" He asked, opening the bag. "I got my brothers stash...Crystal, X, don't need that..." He pulled a few bottles from the bag. "That's some kick ass pain killers." He tossed a bottle at Glenn. "Oxycyclin." He stated, pulling the bottle from the bag. "Not the generic stuff neither, that's first class." Taylor looked at him, questioning why he had so many bottles of pills. Daryl seemed to understand what she was thinking and shrugged. "Merle got the clap on occasion." He stated simply before throwing everything back into the bag and walking it back to the bike.

Taylor couldn't help but laugh a little as the last statement, shrugging her shoulders at the rest of the group. "Come on, it is pretty funny." No one seemed to share her humor, so Taylor quickly stopped her laughter. Glenn shook his head at her.

* * *

><p><em>And I got through another episode! I'm catching up, slowly but surely! There will be a lot more DarylTaylor interaction next chapter, but I'm glad I got some more back story in there._

_As always, review to tell me what you loved/hated. Thanks for reading!_

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	12. Answer

_Sorry about the late update guys! Just a note, until December the 4th I will be preoccupied with school (exams, they suck) so this will be the last update until after that date...Unless I decide to distract myself, which is completely likely._

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

* * *

><p>Taylor couldn't sleep with the noises, no matter how hard she tried. Between Carol's soft sobs and Andrea repeatedly taking apart her gun, she just couldn't fall asleep. She had grown accustomed to the silence of the road far too quickly, not use to any background noise. Daryl had insisted that they stay in the RV for the night, meaning they wouldn't be able to finish their private conversation, Taylor still pondering what she was going to say.<p>

Daryl's sudden movement stirred her from her thoughts as he stood to grab his crossbow. "I'm gonna need my clip now," He told Andrea, who handed it to him.

"Where are you going?" Taylor asked, sitting up from her spot on the floor.

"I'm gonna walk the road." He said while looking back at her, shifting under her gaze. "Look fer the girl." He clarified at her confused look. He looked past Taylor, nodding at Carol.

Andrea and Taylor exchanged glances before Andrea stood, gathering the gun before tossing one look back at Taylor, who laid back down, now sure that she would be unable to sleep. Normally she would go with him, but someone needed to stay with Carol. With Dale on the roof, it was only right that Carol have some form of company.

"I'm coming too," she heard Andrea say before the door closed.

Taylor and Carol stayed in silence for a few moments before Taylor broke it. "You okay?" she asked, knowing the answer.

"No," Carol choked out, wiping her tears. "Are you?" She asked, Taylor unsure of whether it was a courtesy or a general interest.

"No." Taylor replied solemnly, feeling the tears sting the back of her eyes. "You're much worse off than I am...I found Lucky. I needed him more than anything, but he wasn't dependant on me. Not like..." Taylor trailed off, not wanting to make Carol cry more, who managed to collect herself.

"I'm all she's got left, with her father gone. Not like he was good for nothing when he was here." Carol told her, and Taylor could hear the hatred in her voice.

"That kind of man, eh?" Taylor remarked, shaking her head. Carol nodded.

"Nice when I met him, changed after I married him. Only good thing he ever gave me was Sophia, and now..." A fresh wave of tears sprang forth, Taylor standing up at this point and making her way over to the edge of the bed.

"I'm sorry, I wish I could do more.." Taylor ran a hand through her hair, frustrated with the current situation. Lucky was missing, Sophia was missing, and she still didn't have an answer for Daryl's question.

"Carol?" Taylor asked, placing a hand on the woman's thigh, at which she turned. "If you were to die tomorrow, what's one thing you'd regret not doing?"

Carol hiccuped, her eyes looking around. "Oh, I don't know...Not something you usually think about." Carol seemed to be concentrating. "Probably not shooting my bastard husband before those walkers got him." She finally concluded, at which Taylor laughed, Carol smiling. "What about you?" Carol posed the question this time.

"I don't know, someone asked me earlier-"

"Daryl?" Carol interrupted, Taylor looking taken aback.

"Yeah..." She admitted after a moment, shrugging it off.

"He cares for you, you do know that, don't you?" Carol asked, sitting up a bit. Taylor opened her mouth to answer, but no words came out, instead turning away. "You do." Carol said simply.

"He feels guilty. He stopped me from catching Lucky when he ran..." Taylor tried to explain, but Carol shook her head.

"We both know you weren't gonna be able to catch that dog, much as you wanted to." She told Taylor, shaking her head. "You would have gotten lost, along with my daughter. He doesn't care about Lucky, hun," Carol looked Taylor in the eyes, "He cares that you're hurting."

Taylor sat there for a moment in silence, trying to digest what the woman had just clarified to her. "Well, I mean..." Taylor silenced herself, trying to collect the scattered pieces of her mind. "Was it that obvious?" She asked the older woman, who smiled again.

"To everyone but you and him, I think. I doubt he'd admit to it, he's got some macho pride, but his actions are pretty clear." Carol clarified, at which Taylor looked at the bedsheets. "Why don't we keep Dale some company?" Carol asked, throwing her legs over the side of the bed. "Pretty clear neither one of us is gonna sleep tonight." She cast a glance at the brown haired woman, who nodded in agreement.

* * *

><p>"Do you really think we're going to find them?" Andrea asked, the pair wandering through the forest. Daryl raised the light to shine it on her face, scoffing.<p>

"Ya got that look on yer face, same as everybody else. Hell's wrong with ya people, we jus' started lookin'." He told her, looking ahead at the trees.

"Do you?" Andrea pressed, clear that she had her doubts about the whole situation.

"It ain't the mountains of Tibet, it's Georgia! They could be held up in a farm house somewhere. People get lost, they survive, happens all the time. Girl's got tha' dog with her, did tha' city mouse some good havin' him around, sure he'll help out Sophia." He told her, certain that the pair were alive and well.

"She's only 12, dog or no dog. And since when did you give her a nick-name?" Andrea asked, looking toward him.

"Called her tha' since day one." Daryl told her, eyes never leaving the treeline. "And hell, I was younger than 12 when I got lost. Nine days in the woods eating berries, wiping my ass with poison oak."

"They found you?" Andrea asked, following his eyes to the treeline.

"Naw, ol' man was on a bender with some waitress, Merle was doing another stint in juvy..." Andrea dare not ask about his mother, "Didn' even know I was gone. Made my way back, though. Went straight into the kitchen and made myself a sandwich, no worse for wear...Except my ass itched somethin' awful." Andrea snorted, trying to contain her laughed, which proved impossible.

"I'm sorry, that is a terrible story." Andrea told him, managing to control herself for a brief moment before resuming her laughter.

"Well difference is, Sophia's got that dog, and she's got people lookin' for her. I call that an advantage."

"Yeah, but now your city mouse is missing her dog." Andrea told him once she managed to calm herself.

"I ain't ever called her my city mouse." Daryl told her, eyebrows furrowing.

"Not to her face." Andrea teased, still giggly from his story.

"Shut-up." He said simply, amusement clear in his voice.

The pair walked in silence for a while until Daryl heard something, quickly raising his crossbow, moving towards where the sound seemed to have come from, a tent coming into view. The pair noticed the branches above is shaking, approaching cautiously. "What th' hell...?" Daryl asked, seeing a walker hanging from the tree, no meat left on his legs. Despite this, the walker seemed to be attempting to grab at them although it was physically impossible for it to even come close. Daryl took a step closer to the tree, examining the letter attached to it. "Got bit, fever hit, world gone to shit, might as well quit," he recited, looking back up to examine the suspending corpse. "Dumb ass didn't know enough to shoot himself in the head." Daryl remarked, "Turned himself into a big, swingin' piece o'bait."

He noticed Andrea bending over, attempting to prevent her stomach from emptying itself. "You alright?" Daryl asked.

"Trying not to puke." She told him, taking a few deep breaths.

Daryl shrugged. "Go ahead if you gotta."

"I'm fine, let's just talk about something else for a moment." Andrea straightened herself out. "How'd you learn how to shoot?"

"Gotta eat. One thing these walkers an' us have in common. This is the closest he's been to food since he turned. Look at him, hangin' up there like a big pinata." He shone the light on the walker. "Other geeks came an' ate all the flesh off his legs." He narrated for Andrea, who could no longer prevent herself from puking.

"I thought we were changing the subject," she remarked, wiping her mouth.

"Call that pay back for laughin' about my itchy ass." Daryl told her, smiling. "Let's head back." He turned to leave, to Andrea's shock.

"Aren't you gonna...?" She pointed towards the walker, but Daryl just shrugged.

"Naw, he ain't hurtin' nobody. Ain't wastin' an arrow either. He made his choice; opted out. Let 'im hang." He told her, turning away. Andrea moved closer to the struggling walker, who kept trying to reach out to her, pity clear on her face.

"You wanna live now, or not?" Daryl asked suddenly, approaching her. Andrea glared at him. "Jus' a question." He told her.

"An answer for an arrow, fair?" She questioned while glancing at the struggling walker, at which he nodded.

"I don't know if I want to live, or if I have to...Or if it's just a habit." Daryl didn't let his eyes leave hers while he raised his crossbow, firing once, silencing the struggling walker.

"Not much of an answer." He told her. "Waste of an arrow. Come on, lets get back." He turned and began walking back in the general direction of the RV.

"Let me guess; city mouse won't sleep unless she has company, will she?" Andrea asked teasingly, following closely behind.

"Shut-up." He told her again, pondering whether he was being too obvious, or if the woman was extremely intuitive.

* * *

><p>Taylor had left the pair on the roof together as she saw the sky began to show signs of the coming dawn instead sitting at the table of the RV, still trying to come up with a coherent answer for Daryl. As tired as she was, she didn't risk trying to sleep alone knowing what the possible outcome might be.<p>

Carol came running into the RV, obviously upset. "Nothing," she told Taylor before burying settling into bed and resuming her crying, Taylor understanding what she meant standing only to bump into Daryl as he came in.

"Nothing?" Taylor asked, looking up at him. He shook his head, looking down at her. She nodded.

"Thank for trying, really." Taylor told him, placing a hand on his arm before returning to the table. He put down his crossbow and slid into the seat beside her.

"Think of an answer yet, city mouse?" He asked, and although Taylor could hear the teasing in his voice he looked at her intently. Taylor couldn't help but laugh.

"I have a name, you know," She reminded him, running a hand through her hair. "And, I have thought of an answer. Sort of." She clarified, smiling a little bit.

"Okay." Daryl said simply, waiting for her to continue.

"If I were to die tomorrow, which given the state of the world is a complete possibility," Taylor looked into his shockingly blue eyes, "I'd regret not getting to know you."

Daryl looked at her for a moment before laughing. "That's it?" He finally asked, moving to put an arm around her. "That's all? Of all the things you'd regret not doin', it'd be askin' me some stupid questions?"

"It occurred to me that as much as we talk, I know nothing about you. Besides the fact that you refuse to use my name and know how to skin a squirrel." Taylor told him, moving her head into a more comfortable position against him, hearing his heart beat through his shirt.

"Ask anything ya want, but I'll be askin' too." He told her, and Taylor couldn't help but smile into his chest.

* * *

><p><em>And because I'm a totally evil person, I'm leaving it there. Also, if you do choose to review, tell me a question you'd like Taylor to ask him, or Daryl to ask Taylor. If it's a good one, I'll try and work it in after my exams.<em>

_As always, thank-you for reading, and feel free to review to tell me what you loved/hated!  
><em>

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	13. Uncanny Resemblance

_I'm so going to regret this when my alarm goes off tomorrow morning...oh well, I'm inspired, and so I shall write. Thank-you all for your suggestions on what questions they should ask each other! (I'm beginning to think very few people actually read my notes, but c'est la vie). Also, thank-you for the well wishes on my exams! I'm obviously procrastinating..._

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

* * *

><p>"So...erm..." It occurred to Taylor that she hadn't though of any real questions to ask, her mind trying desperately to come up with something. "What's your favorite colour?" The trailer was silent, Carol having either dozed off to sleep or trying to stifle her laughter at the stupidity of the question. Taylor felt Daryl's laugh before she heard it.<p>

"Tha' fuck kinda question is that?" He asked her, clearly expecting a more well planned out question.

"Well I just thought...basics and...well you ask one then!" Taylor pulled herself off his chest, placing her elbows on the table refusing to face him. A moment of silence passed while Daryl contemplated what he was going to ask.

"...Green." He stated before continuing quickly, not giving Taylor a chance to question him. "What's somethin' ya miss from before this whole world went ta hell?" He pressed, putting his arm which had fallen from her shoulder as she pulled away back, pulling her closer again. Taylor found the crook of his neck and placed her head there.

She thought about the question for a moment, biting on her lower lip. "This is going to sound so stupid...Back home, I had a box where I kept every card I've ever received from the time I was 10. I'd love to be able to read all of them again." Taylor thought back to all the cards she'd collected over the years; some from acquaintances containing no more than "Best wishes," to some from her closest friends as they poured their hearts out onto the paper. She felt Daryl shake his head.

"You think too damn small, of all the things ta miss, you choose cards. Of all the fuckin' things..." His voice was laced with amusement as he wiped his forehead, clearly expecting a different answer.

"My turn." Taylor interrupted, having a question at the ready. "Why'd you follow me to the river? Was it to be a creep or to keep an eye on me? Be honest." Taylor felt him tense against her.

"You don' need ta make it sound so creepy, y'know. Ain't like I followed ya jus' ta watch, wanted ta make sure ya didn't end up as walker grub." Taylor pulled her head from his chest to look at him, noticing he was slightly flushed. "What?" He asked, voice rising slightly.

"Not 'just' to watch me?" Taylor made air quotes when she said just, having caught onto what he was saying.

"Well- I..." Daryl sputtered, realizing what he'd just admitted. "Fuck it. Mostly ta make sure you were safe, partly fer the view." He admitted, collecting himself surprisingly fast.

Taylor pulled herself closer to her face, hand resting on his thigh. "And did you like what you saw?" She questioned, feeling brave from lack of sleep.

Daryl smirked, answering her question without words. "Unless I'm wrong, which I ain't," he interrupted, pressing his forehead against hers, his hot breath tickling Taylor's cheeks, "It's my turn ta be askin' questions." He broke off, pulling away suddenly much to Taylor's disappointment. "You got some boy waitin' back home for ya?" Daryl asked, at which Taylor raised an eyebrow.

"What if I do?" Taylor questioned, at which Daryl shook his head.

"You ain't answered my question yet, city mouse." He told her, running the hand that had been laying on her shoulder through her hair.

"No." Taylor answered honestly, shaking her head against his neck. "I've always been to busy with work; I mean, being in a different country every week puts a strain on any relationship. I couldn't even have a dog, it would've starved-" Taylor cut herself off, her mind trailing back to Lucky. She felt a lump rising in the back of her throat and attempted to swallow it.

"Stop actin' like we ain't gonna find your dog." Daryl told her flatly. "The hells wrong with you people? I ain't found a single person in the whole lot who honestly believes they're gonna be fine. People go missin'. Dogs go missin'. Ain't like he's gonna get run over, no cars ta do it. Ain't like no walkers gonna be able ta catch him, you couldn' and you were goin' like a cat with it's tail on fire. Hey," He put a finger under her chin, tilting her head upwards. "He's gonna be just fine, ya hear?"

Taylor studied him for a moment, trying to see if he was being honest or just attempting to comfort her. "I hear, I hear..." She removed his finger from her chin, wrapping her arms around his well muscled torso. "I believe you." She assured him, closing her eyes, feeling the heaviness weighing her entire body down.

"Yer turn." He reminded her gently, rubbing her back in a slow, steady pace.

"Why do you look after me?" Taylor abandoned all her previous questions, her body relaxing in his arms slowly, her mind becoming foggy. She felt him shrug, heard him open his mouth only to close it again, the slow rub of her back stopping as he tried to think of an answer.

"Couldn' tell ya if I tried, city mouse." He finally admitted. "Why do ya let me?" He countered, resuming his, trailing her hand up and down her back.

Taylor shrugged, refusing to open her eyes being far too comfortable in her current position. "You're nice. Like a hard candy with a gooey center. It's just a matter of cracking you open, even if you still have a hard shell, I'll know what's on the inside."

"Yer rambling." Daryl told her, receiving only a grunt in response as she pulled herself closer, his warmth drifting her off into oblivion.

* * *

><p>Taylor awoke to the sound of birds, noting that she had been covered in a blanket sometime during the night, curled up on the bench of the table. It must've been near noon judging by the suns bright light streaming in through the windows, waking her from her deep sleep.<p>

"You're alive." She sat up straight at the sound of Dale's voice, noticing he was sitting across from her on the other bench, a glass of water in his hand.

"Sorry," Taylor apologized instinctively, "I must've passed out..." She ran a hand through her hair, noting that she was in desperate need of a hair-cut. Her bob had grown out to her shoulders, Taylor making a mental note to ask for scissors when she got the chance, after Lucky and Sophia had been found.

"Yeah, Daryl told us to leave you alone for a bit. Said you needed some sleep." Dale leaned back, putting his hands behind his head while waiting for a response.

"Where are we?" Taylor caught a glimpse of a farm out the window while attempting to change the subject, only to remember the conversation with the lady on horseback the previous day. "Carl...?" Her eyes turned to the older man sitting across from her, who smiled a bit.

"He's fine, doc said he'd pull through. Lost one of his men getting the supplies, though. Hate to tell you, but you just missed the funeral." Dale informed her, at which Taylor shook her head.

"I'll give my condolences to the family." Taylor stood up, stretching her hands above her head feeling the pull of her muscles and hearing the crack of her bones.

"I'd hate to pry," Dale looked up at her, eyes full of concern, "But what's going on between you and Daryl?" Taylor raised an eyebrow at him, questioning why he'd ask such a thing. "I ask because, well, he seems to be more protective of you than anything else at the moment. Even his crossbow."

Taylor shrugged. "Haven't quite put a name on it yet, to be honest." She told him, rubbing the sleepiness from her eyes. "But as soon as I do, I'll let you know." Taylor promised him, knowing he meant no harm.

"I'd appreciate that." He told her, nodding as she opened the door to the RV.

"How long's this girl been lost?" Taylor turned as she heard the words being spoken in a voice she hadn't heard before, coming face to face with a greying old man. He took a long look at her before whispering "I'll be damned..."

Taylor froze, noticing that all eyes had turned to her. "Hi," she squeaked out after a moment, before adding "I'm sorry for your loss..." The man seemed to collect himself at those words, nodding.

"Thank-you, words like those are valued at times like these. You must be the Taylor I've heard so much about." The noticed the rest of her group exchanging glances, trying to figure out who would've brought her up to Hershall. Daryl's eyes went cold, glaring at the elder gentleman so Taylor knew it couldn't have been him.

"I suppose I must be." Taylor smiled at him, still trying to figure out why she would've been brought up in conversation.

"Your brother Ryan always talked about you, kept a picture in his wallet. Haven't heard from him since before this whole thing started." Taylor froze, trying to deduce if the man was serious. He continued on. "Kept saying you were a flight attendant, coming back home when his wife gave birth to meet your niece or nephew."

"How do you know my brother?" Taylor asked, her heart beating faster in her chest, her mouth going dry. She had no idea where the group was, but if they were close enough that this man knew him...

"Small town, y'know. When people start showing up at the grocery store you strike up a conversation, try to make them feel welcome. You look exactly like him, uncannily so..." Hershall trailed off, inspecting her features.

"We're twins. He calls me his little sister because I was born a minute later." Taylor explained, at which Hershall nodded.

"Wish I had news for you, I really do. Haven't been keeping track of my neighbors, to be honest with you. Sorry," He tried to console her as her face fell.

"It's fine. But you could give me directions, couldn't you? Even rough ones? I haven't been to visit since he moved down here, been too busy..." Her eyes pleaded with him, Hershall nodding.

"I know roughly where his house is, not too specific though. I'll do my best." He assured her, at which Taylor smiled gratefully.

"That's all I ask." Hershall turned away from her, ready to get back to business while the rest of the group tried to process the information they'd just taken in. "So how long has she been lost?" Hershall asked again, at which Rick seemed to snap out of the daze first.

"This'll be day three," he told the older man, Taylor noticing the woman from the previous day approaching with what looked like a rolled up poster.

"County survey map," She placed it on the hood of the truck, pinning it down with two rocks. "Shows terrain and elevations."

"This is perfect! We can finally get this thing organized, mark out grids, search in teams..." His eyes skimmed over the map, taking in the detail, already mentally breaking it up.

"Not you," Hershall told him firmly with an authoritative voice. "You gave 3 unit's of blood. You wouldn't be hiking five minutes in this heat before you'd go passing out." He turned to Shane. "And your ankle. Push it now and you'll end up down for a month, no good to anybody." The pair exchanged disappointed looks, obviously trying to figure a way around the problem.

"Guess it's just me," Daryl said, taking a closer look at the map.

"Hey, don't count me out. My dog's still lost out there, I gotta find him." Taylor reminded, Daryl giving her a stern look. "I'm uninjured and I'm use to walking the road. I can be of help." Daryl gave Rick a look, who shrugged, choosing not to get involved.

"Fine," Daryl relented, "We'll head up from the creek, work our way from there." He told Hershall, who seemed to agree with the idea.

"I can still be useful, drive up the interstate and see if Sophia wandered back." Shane stated, not willing to sit down for the day.

"Tomorrow, then," Rick said, Taylor noting for the first time how abnormally pale he was, "We'll start doing this right tomorrow."

"That means we can't have our people out there with just knives, we need to gun train." Shane remarked, looking particularly at Hershall as it was his property.

"I'd prefer if you didn't carry them on my property. We've made it this far without turning into an armed cavalry." He stated, clearly uncomfortable with the idea of strangers wandering around with guns.

"With all due respect, a horde of those come walking in here," Shane started before Rick cut him off.

"We're guests here, this is your property and we will respect that." He surveyed the group, making his point clear before pulling out his own gun and laying it on the hood of the car, Shane imitating him with a small sigh.

"Now, I hate to be the one to ask but somebodies got to...What happens if we find her and she's bit? Or your dog's bit? Or the both of 'em?" Shane questioned, looking pointedly at Taylor.

"If he's still breathing and not attacking, you bring him here to me. If he dies along the way you do what you have to, but try and bring him back. I want him to know I appreciate everything he did for me." Taylor told him, swallowing the lump in her throat. "I can't speak for Carol, but that's what I want." Rick nodded at her.

"You do what has to be done, but try to respect her wishes." He told Shane, who seemed hesitant.

"Traveling with an infected dog doesn't seem safe." Taylor saw Daryl sneer, straightening himself to say something to Shane before Taylor interrupted.

"We don't even know if dogs can get infected. If he's bit and not attacking, muzzle him and bring him here. If he starts attacking, you have my consent to do what needs to be done. But only if he's a threat. Only." Taylor reiterated to him, at which he consented.

"I do request one rifle on look-out. Dale's got experience." Shane informed, at which Hershall seemed to consider.

"Our people would feel safer, and less inclined to carry a gun..." Rick trailed off at Hershall thought over the request before nodding. "Thank-you." Rick expressed his gratitude before the rest headed out, Taylor trailing behind Daryl.

"You stay close, y'hear?" He told her sternly, slinging his crossbow over his shoulder. "We already got yer mutt an' the girl ta be lookin' for, don't go addin' to the list."

"I have no intentions on hiding in the woods." Taylor informed him, heading inside the RV to grab her machete, returning a moment later.

"An' you keep tha' thing at yer side, ya hear?" Daryl told her, Taylor now stopping to survey him.

"I've survived this long, you know. I can handle myself." She said, at which he snickered.

"Come on, city mouse. We're goin' hiking."

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><p><em>Alright guys, I should be getting back to my studies, but expect the rating to go up either next update or the one following. As always, review to tell me what you lovedhated. Thanks!_

_-PassiveAggressive101_


	14. Exploration

_So, if you people keep reviewing at the rate you are, I'm going to break the 100 review mark. Very exciting! As I warned, the rating did go up this chapter so avert your eyes if you feel it necessary!_

_I'm a firm believer that Daryl is a boxer man,_

_Just a reminder, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>The walk was a long one, trailing along the creek, Daryl being more focused on surveying the area than keeping a conversation, although it didn't deter Taylor from trying.<p>

"So, what exactly should I be watching out for?" Taylor asked, trying to deduce what, if anything, she should be looking for short of her dog or Sophia, the obvious things.

"Tracks," Daryl said simply, looking back at her. "Paw prints, shoe prints, anythin' that'd tell us if either one of 'em passed through here." He continued, surveying the ground in front of him.

"Got it." Taylor replied, following his gaze before another thought occurred to her. "Wouldn't that be easier if it was muddy?"

"It would, but I ain't got no control over the weather. 'Sides, with the two of 'em in the woods, they're likely to catch a cold if it was pissin' down rain." Daryl retorted, stopping to kneel down and inspect something on the ground which Taylor couldn't understand.

"So then-" Taylor began questioning, before Daryl cut in.

"I'll worry 'bout finding tracks, you make sure not to lose sight of my ass, else I'll haveta track you down top o'everythin' else." Daryl reminded her, smiling a bit before continuing forward.

"I'm at the bottom of the list even if I do lose sight of your nice ass." Taylor smirked as Daryl stopped in his tracks to look back at her, an eyebrow raised.

"The hell you lookin' at my ass for, city mouse?" He asked, slinging his crossbow over his shoulder, a seductive smirk replacing the raised eyebrow.

"Same reason you followed me to the creek." Taylor closed the gap between them, a smirk of her own playing on her lips. "Just enjoying the view." She continued up the hill, leaving him behind her for a moment.

"Ey!" He called after her, sprinting to get ahead. "I lead, y'hear? Don' need you endin' up gettin' attacked by no walker. Got enough ta worry about right now."

"I've taken down walkers before." Taylor reminded, at which Daryl scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"I ain't seen you put down none." Daryl told her, shaking his head. "Far as I know, ya could'a avoided 'em all on your way down here. And I ain't lettin' one get near enough to ya to let you take 'em down anyhow, to stay a few feet behind, ya hear?" He reiterated, surveying her face for a moment before continuing the path up the hill. "'Sides," he added as an afterthought, "You get a better view from down there."

"Uh, Daryl?" Taylor asked, having him turn again.

"What?"

"Is that something like what we should be looking for?" She pointed towards the east where a house stood, it's window which must have at one point contained a family being dusted over, leaving the impression of rot.

Daryl let out a small laugh, looking between her and the house. "Ya, somethin' like that. Come on," They began making their way towards the abandoned structure, quiet as to not disturb anyone or anything that may have decided to stick around, the bushes leaving a few marks on Taylor's skin. She assumed that Daryl must have gotten long use to them. It was as though he had some kind of immunity to anything involving the outdoors; he didn't seem to get mosquito bites, stray branches didn't seem scratch at him the same they did to her.

"I'm leading," Daryl whispered when they reached the door. "If you see anythin', you let me know. If it gets too close," he looked to the machete at her side, "I hope ya ain't lyin' 'bout takin down walkers."

Taylor shook her head, Daryl nodding before slowly opening the door which creaked louder than Taylor imagined a door could manage. Daryl turned, surveying the house for any signs of life. The place appeared abandoned, Taylor not hearing a single noise, doing a 360 degree survey of the first room just to be sure. "Look," Daryl called her over, gesturing the closet where someone had set up a makeshift bed, complete with pillow and blanket. The pair looked at each other for a moment, before Daryl stormed out of the house. "Sophia!" He called, hoping that she'd stayed near enough to the house to hear him. Taylor did a quick sweep of the remaining rooms, machete in hand, ready to attack if necessary.

"Anythin'?" Taylor jumped at the sudden intrusion, her knuckled clutching harder at the machete's handle until she realized who it was.

"No. No one. Nothing." Taylor stammered, running her free hand through her hair. "Looks like she stayed here, though." She looked back at the can of empty tuna and the makeshift bedroom.

"Yeah," Daryl agreed, leading the way back into the main room, "If she was here she couldn't have gotten far. I just don't see no paw prints..." Taylor's heart sank, her face reflecting the pain she felt. Daryl took notice.

"Ey, don't men he wasn't here. Means he didn't get no mud on his paws or nothin'." He told her, lifting her chin to meet his eyes. "He's fine." He tried to console her, Taylor nodding before wrapping her arm around his torso, burying her face against his hard chest. His arm found it's way around her, chin pressing into the top of her head.

Taylor took a few deep breaths, trying to compose herself. "Okay," She said after a moment, attempting to pull away but being pinned in place by Daryl. "Daryl?" She asked, looking up at him, her eyes meeting his. "You okay?"

"I'm thinkin'." He told her, keeping her pinned to his chest. She was amazed at the power he had in his one arm, not daring to venture what he could do to her with two. Not daring to imagine...

"I'd give you a penny to share your thoughts, but I don't think currency has any real value anymore. So...Tell me?" Taylor asked, his eyes never leaving hers. He chuckled a little bit before shaking his head.

Daryl's smirk returned, taking one last glance around the room before turning back to her. "I'd haveta show ya, and I ain't sure if you'd be...comfortable with it." Daryl seemed to be choosing his words carefully, taking his crossbow off his shoulder and lowering it to the ground, his hand sliding down her arm.

"Show me." Taylor implored him, a mischievous glimmer in her eye. Not a second later, Daryl's lips came crashing down onto hers, Taylor readily responding, her hands gripping the back of his shirt, his hands finding their way down to her hips, finger nails digging into her skin.

The pair broke apart for a moment, Daryl's breath hot on her lips. "That all?" Taylor dared to ask, earning a scoff from Daryl.

"How much are ya ready fer?" He responded, leaning down to place a kiss on her neck, then another with a bit more force which earned a moan from Taylor. His other hand became entangled in her brown hair, now biting softly on the flesh of her neck.

"You know what I'm ready for." Taylor managed to choke out between gasps and moans. He stopped biting at her neck long enough to catch her eyes. "Don't hold back," she added, at which his eyes darkened with lust.

The hand that had wound itself in her hair now pulled at it, using it to direct her back to the wall, his lips reuniting with hers, much more furious. She parted her lips to allow him entry, their tongues dancing behind the confides of their lips. Daryl reached down, guiding of Taylor's legs around his torso allowing her to feel his already erect member against her opening through their pants, causing her to gasp. She tugged at the hem of his shirt, which he gladly removed allowing Taylor to catch sight of his torso.

"Oh my God, Daryl," Taylor's mind went reeling, noticing the numerous scars that lined his abs. "What the hell?" She asked, running her hand along one before his hand caught her wrists.

"Let's save the stories fer later." He told her, lacing his fingers with hers. She nodded in agreement before repossessing her hand, lifting off her own shirt to reveal her bra. His lips found her clavicle bone, causing Taylor to buck against him. She felt the smile forming on his lips before he continued. Taylor raked her nails along his now bare back, illiciting a moan from him. She reached down to undo his belt, feeling him against her hand while she did so.

Daryl's hands grabbed at her breasts, their lips once again meeting, Taylor biting at his lip to encourage him. He reached around and undid the snap of her bra, which she quickly shrugged off, his calloused hands massaging them, thumbs rubbing at her nipples. Taylor moaned into his mouth, her hands finding the waistband of his pants, attempting to pull them down.

Daryl broke away, lifting her other leg which she wrapped around his torso. He knelt down, placing her rear on the floor before unwrapping his arms from around her, taking the opportunity to remove his pants and boxers before finding her lips again. Taylor placed her weight on her hand, trying to prevent him from pushing her down to the floor, which proved unsuccessful. His hand found the fly of her pants, quickly removing them, leaving her only in her panties under him. Taylor reached down to gran a hold of his manhood, gently stroking it causing him to growl into her mouth and bite on her lip. Taylor rubbed her thumb along the head, causing him to pull away from her, a growl coming from his throat this time, animalistic and wanting more. Taylor used her other hand to feel his abs, skimming over the scars, worming her way up to his hair.

"I'll give ya one last chance to back out." Daryl pressed his forehead against hers, eyes closed, trying to collect himself in case she decided to call it quits.

"Fuck me, Daryl." Taylor pleaded, her hormones raging, nails digging into his side. Daryl smiled.

"Naw," He whispered, his hand trailing over her bare stomach, finding it's way to her opening. causing Taylor to gasp and arch her back. "Not yet." His finger began making slow circles, causing Taylor to buck against him. His lips found hers in time to muffle her moans, his other hand cupping her left breast, pinching at her nipple. Taylor squealed into Daryl's mouth, encouraging him to do more. He slipped a finger into her slowly, ensuring that she was comfortable with it before setting a pace, Taylor now clawing at his back from shoulder to waist. Daryl inserted another finger, Taylor quickly becoming moist and being pushed closer and closer to the edge from his well practised fingers.

"Fuck," Taylor whispered, Daryl lowering himself to suckle and bite at her nipple while he continued to finger her, Taylor lacing her fingers into his hair, pulling whenever he hit a particularly tender spot. "Daryl," His name came out as a moan. He stopped suckling and rose to have their faces at level, readjusting himself.

"Taylor," he replied, voice a whisper, how breath hitting her already flushed face. He entered her slowly, causing Taylor to moan in pleasure. He set a slow pace at first, giving her time to adjust to his girth, eventually speeding up, their tongues fighting for dominance. Taylor felt herself being pushed closer and closer to the edge, wanting to enjoy the moment for as long as possible. She placed a hand on his shoulder, rolling him onto his back, much to Daryl's surprise. She climbed on top of him, placing a hand on his chest to support herself before she began setting her own pace. Daryl threw his head back, a moan escaping him, his hands once again finding their way to her breasts, caressing them only adding to Taylor's pleasure.

"Daryl," Taylor choked out, realizing that she change of position only pushed her closer to the brink. "I'm gonna..."

"Go on then," he encouraged, raising his pelvis to match her pace, each time a wave of pleasure passing over her entire body. Taylor's whole body tightened as she reached her peak, releasing a moment later in a wash of ecstasy, her world brightening momentarily before fading back to normal. Daryl moaned beneath her, feeling her muscles spasm, tightening around his member and releasing creating a unique and indescribable feeling.

Taylor paused her movements long enough for Daryl to regain dominance, rolling her over onto her back and lifting a leg with his hand and placing it on his shoulder. Taylor let out a cry of pleasure, still sensitive from her orgasm as he entered her, quickly setting a fast pace. His arms landed on either side of her hips, Taylor ran her finger nails down his arm, causing him to shiver and increase his speed, his hair damp with sweat. "Taylor," He moaned loudly, throwing his head back. "I'm-" Taylor pushed herself onto her elbows while lowering her leg, catching his lips with hers. She felt his body tighten, a second later a warmth spreading inside of her. They stayed there for a moment before Daryl rolled off of her, his back on the ground. He pulled her onto his shoulder, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

"Get what I was thinkin'?" He looked at her from the corner of his eye, both exhausted from what had just taken place.

"Pretty sure I do." Taylor replied, still attempting to catch her breath. "Can we just lay here a while, the door is closed and all..."

"Sure," He interrupted her, needing no convincing, placing a hand behind his head.

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><p><em>So...that's my first sex scene EVER. I'm sorry if it was terrible. I tried, I really did. Also, want to point out that this is the first time he`s ever used her name. Ha.<em>

_I should probably get back to studying..._

_As always, review to tell me what you loved/hated!_

-PassiveAggressive101


	15. Insecurities

_Hey! Sorry for the infrequent updates, exams KILLED me, and then my manager went on vacation so I've been working crazy hours...I swear I wanted to update, but I had NO time!_

_As always, I own nothing in this story._

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><p>Daryl had picked a Cherokee rose on the way back to camp, heading into the trailer to give it to Carol. Taylor stayed outside basking in the sun, reminiscing on the days when she worried about her tan line, not about walkers eating her alive.<p>

"Hey," Glenn pulled her out of her thoughts, taking a seat on the rock beside the one where Taylor was perched. "Find anything?" He questioned, referring to their trip to look for Sophia.

"Yes and no." Taylor told him, shaking her head. "We found a cupboard with a makeshift bed in it, an empty can of tuna, but no Sophia. No Lucky..." Taylor looked at the ground, her stomach in a knot from both not eating and worry.

"I made a run to the pharmacy," Glenn seemed willing to change the subject, to avert Taylor's attention from her missing dog. "Meds and stuff..." Taylor raised an eyebrow at the 'stuff' comment, giving Glenn a look-over.

"By stuff..." Glenn blushed a little bit, taking off his cap and running a hand through his hair before putting it back on, "You don't mean..."

"Well I-she-we..." Glenn stammered, trying desperately to come up with another object that one could possibly need at a pharmacy.

"Care to spare one?" Taylor asked, biting her lower lip. Glenn's jaw dropped, a moment of silence passing before he thought better than to leave it hanging.

"You and Daryl?" His voice was a whisper now, eyebrows raised at the new information.

"Please don't tell anyone, it's not that big a deal..." Taylor immediately regretted asking Glenn for the condom, knowing that if he spilled there could be possible backlash from the group. "I'm sure Rick and Lori get it on, they'd probably appreciate some too. And now you and Hershall's daughter..."

"Maggie," Glenn corrected out of habit. "And it's as though there's anything wrong with it, it's just...Unexpected. Daryl doesn't seem like he cares much for anyone – well, until now I guess."

"So you do, then?" Taylor asked, hopeful. "I really, really don't want to end up pregnant. I mean, in the middle of a zombie apocalypse..." Glenn looked suddenly uncomfortable, looking to the ground and shifting his foot. "Oh, come on. I'm sure you and Maggie used condoms...Right?" Taylor asked, confused by Glenn's behaviour. They had made a run to the store for a reason...

"Yeah, we- well I- Maggie isn't pregnant." Glenn finally stated, leaping to his feet. "I'll give you some later, okay?" Glenn walked away, leaving a confused Taylor in his wake.

"Well, that was...odd." She said aloud, stretching her legs, stepping out from the shade to get some sun.

"What was odd?" Taylor turned, hearing Daryl's voice coming towards her.

"Don't worry about it." Taylor blushed slightly, shaking her head. "How's Carol doing?" She questioned, unsure of whether or not to go ask the woman herself.

"Good as can be expected. Sooner we find tha' little girl, the better." Daryl told her, rubbing some stray dirt from his head away.

"It's never a question of 'if' with you, is it?" Taylor couldn't help but smile at his determination.

"Why'd it be 'if'? Ain't like she fell off the face o'the world or nothin'- just missin' is all. Same as yer dog." Daryl assured her, a little agitation in his voice. "Everybody here jus' want to write her and yer dog off – I ain't, simple as that."

"Thank-you," Taylor smiled up at him, Daryl nodding in return. "I'm going to go see if Hershall is ready to give me directions to my brothers house, even if it's only vague. You want to tag along?"

"Nah, ain't my business. He don't seem to fond of me neither. I'm gonna take a look at the map, see where I'm heading tomorrow." Daryl told her, slinging his crossbow over his arm.

"You mean we." Taylor caught on quickly, seeing the slight change in his posture.

"No, yer stayin' here. Don' need you gettin' lost or shot by accident." He told her firmly, avoiding her eyes which expressed genuine confusion.

"Daryl, I am going to look for my dog. Whether it's with you or not is up to you." Taylor crossed her arms, daring him to disagree. He seemed to consider the challenge for a moment before sighing.

"Look, I'm takin' one of the horses. You ain't comin' with me, so just stay at camp so I ain't gotta worry about ya." Daryl seemed rather agitated now.

"I have taken down walkers before, Daryl-" Taylor began before he interrupted.

"But that ain't the point! Point is, I don't want you out there, gettin' yerself hurt when I promised I'd bring back yer dumb ass mutt. Let me handle it, will ya?" His voice rose slightly when he spoke to her this time, clearly trying to make her see things from his point of view, which Taylor refused to do.

"Look, I'm going, with or without you. Now I'm going to talk to Hershall, you go do whatever you have to." Taylor turned, walking a few feet away before Daryl spoke again stopping her in her tracks.

"What're you gonna do if ya find your brothers place and he's there, fuckin' alive and well? Jus' leave the group, live with him?" Daryl sounded angry now, voice rising slightly while gesturing to the treeline.

"I'd hoped that we'd be willing to take them in, you know, same as you did me!" Taylor voice rose in retaliation. "And if not...I don't fucking know, Daryl! If he's alive I'm sure he'll want to come with us!"

"And his baby, too? His wife? You know how fuckin' risky it'll be ta have a baby travellin' with us, it cries once at a bad moment and the whole groups done!" Daryl took a few steps towards her, not entirely closing the distance but enough for Taylor to see the anger in his eyes. "Yer either gonna get us all killed, or walk into that house and find yer whole fuckin' family dead. Don't go." His voice was controlled, almost pleading, but Taylor only surveyed his face.

"You're joking, right?" Taylor asked, crossing her arms. "You've got to be joking. I've been wandering for God only knows how long to find them, alone, along an endless stretch of highway and now you've decided you don't want me to go?" Her voice mimicked his; calm and collected, with venom seeping through in small doses. "I want to know either way, whether they're alive or dead. I don't know what I'll do, Daryl-" She was once again interrupted by another of Daryl's questions.

"And if they're dead, ya goin' ta have the heart to kill 'em, or ya goin' ta leave that fer someone else?" Daryl pressed, his fist clenched into a tight ball. Taylor's eyes narrowed into a cold glare, her brown eyes going far colder than his blue ones.

"Fuck you." Taylor felt tears form in his eyes but blinked them away, turning and walking towards Hershall's house.

"Ya already did that today, ya know." Daryl called after her, at which Taylor turned to face him, mouth agape, tears in her eyes. The two looked at each other for a second before Taylor continued on her path towards Hershall's. Daryl ran a hand through his hair before kicking at the stump of a tree before heading towards the treeline. 'Atleast some huntin'll get my mind off this shit,' he thought to himself.

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><p>Taylor considered the door to the farm for a moment, unsure of whether to knock or walk in. She concluded that knocking was probably a good idea and raised her knuckle to the white pained door, knocking three times. She heard the sound of footsteps a moment before the door opened, revealing Hershall himself.<p>

"Hello Hershall." Taylor greeted, plastering a fake smile on her face. "I was wondering if you had the directions ready yet?" She asked, trying to sound pleasant despite her want to break down and cry. She'd had plenty of practice while working, so it wasn't a foreign feeling to fain happiness.

"Luckily for you, I do actually. But didn't you want to wait around until you found this girl and your dog?" Hershall stepped aside to allow Taylor in, closing the doot behind her.

"If nothing shows up in the next few days, I'll head over and see Ryan's farm, maybe if he's still there..." Taylor let her voice trail off, unsure of how to end her sentence. Hershall seemed to understand her conundrum and instead pulled out a piece of paper which he'd already written down.

"Best way to get there would probably be by car or horse. Take this street all the way to Meadows Drive, make a right onto it and keep going straight. Your brothers farm should be on the right hand side; can't miss the red barn." Hershall explained.

"Why do I need a horse or car for that? Doesn't seem so far..." Taylor inquired, trying to understand the man's reasoning.

"This ain't like the city. People own quite a lot of property; going up the street ain't as simple as passing a few houses, you gotta go for a while before you even pass one. You could walk it if you really wanted to, might take you half a day though." Taylor nodded in understanding.

"I'll stick around for a few days, see if we can find Sophia or Lucky." Taylor shoved the paper in her back pocket, looking the older man in the eyes. "Thank-you, Hershall. This means a lot." Taylor said, genuinely grateful.

"Ain't a problem." Hershall replied, busying himself with papers while Taylor made her way out the front door, gently closing it behind her, looking around to see who was holding onto the map, interested in seeing whether or not there was a shortcut to her brothers farm by cutting through the forest.

She headed towards the RV, hoping Dale was holding it for the day, hoping that Daryl hadn't taken it with him.

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><p><em>So sorry to cut off there guys, but I'm wiped from working crazy hours this week. I will update again in the next few days and it will be a longer chapter – I just wanted to let you all know that I am alive and continuing the story.<em>

_As always, review to tell me what you loved/hated._

_-PassiveAggressive101_


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